DEFENCE

Suez Campaign Medal

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations he has had in the last five years regarding the issue of a medal for those who saw active service in Egypt between 1951 and 1954.

Lewis Moonie: Within the last five years, the Ministry of Defence has received a number of representations from hon. Members and the general public on the subject of a retrospective campaign medal for service in the Canal Zone during the period 1951 to 1954. From available records it has been determined that the Ministry of Defence has received at least two parliamentary questions for oral response, 16 parliamentary questions for written response (including this one), 340 letters from MPs on behalf of constituents and recorded as ministerial correspondence, seven early-day motions, two Adjournment debates, nine letters to a Defence Minister from other than an MP, which were answered direct by him or on his behalf by his office and 300 letters from members of the public which were variously addressed to the Prime Minister, a Defence Minister, or to Her Majesty the Queen and were answered by an official on behalf of the Ministry of Defence. It should be noted that a number of MPs have written to the Ministry of Defence on this subject on more than one occasion and a small number of veterans have written many times.

Rotorcraft Procurement

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on his plans for the support, amphibious and battlefield rotorcraft procurement.

Lewis Moonie: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) on 8 November 2001, Official Report, column 378W.

Parliamentary Ombudsman

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many formal notices his Department has received in the last year from the Parliamentary Ombudsman expressing an intention to carry out an investigation; and in respect of each notice how long it took to respond.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 27 November 2001
	Information on the outcome of statutory investigations which were concluded during 2000–01 are set out in the Parliamentary Ombudsman's Annual Report for 2000–01, copies of which are available in the Library of the House, or on the Parliamentary Ombudsman's website at www.ombudsman.org.uk/pca/document/par01/index.htm
	Between 1 April 2001 and 31 October 2001, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has received one new statutory statement of complaint from the Parliamentary Ombudsman. The MOD responded to this case within the time scale requested by the ombudsman. The time taken to respond was 24 working days.
	A formal notice regarding a matter in the War Pensions Agency was sent to the then Department of Social Security in March 2001. Following transfer of responsibility for the War Pensions Agency, the MOD will be responsible for responding to any observations the ombudsman makes in his report.

Defence Aviation Repair Agency

John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to introduce further measures to monitor DARA's ability to control the agency's progress in improving turnaround times.

Adam Ingram: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Rhondda (Mr. Bryant) on 23 October 2001, Official Report, column 110W. There are currently no plans to introduce further measures to monitor DARA's performance.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days;
	(2)  how many letters his Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Lewis Moonie: The Ministry of Defence does not record centrally the total number of letters it receives. However, between 20 June and 20 July 2001, the Department received 478 pieces of correspondence from hon. and right hon. Members, Members of the European Parliament, Members of the devolved legislatures and Peers, which received substantive replies from Ministers as follows:
	
		
			 Number of working days Number of pieces of correspondence Percentage replied to 
		
		
			 Within 15 426 89 
			 Within 20 453 95 
			 Within 30 460 96 
			 Within 40 468 98 
			 Over 40 10 2 
		
	
	Ministers also received 662 pieces of correspondence for answer from members of the public during this period.

Service Families Taskforce

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the work of the Services Families Taskforce.

Adam Ingram: The Service Families Taskforce was set up in 1999 to deal with service family issues that were outside the control of the Ministry of Defence (MOD). It is headed by a Ministerial Group which last met on 15 November. I also meet with representatives of service families twice a year to discuss areas of concern. The Service Families Taskforce has been involved in a wide range of issues since its conception. The main areas of progress over the last year are:
	(a) The MOD is being consulted by the Department of Health in the drafting of new Adoption legislation to ensure that service families will not be disadvantaged.
	(b) We have resolved the problems that some service families had encountered, as a result of the payment of local overseas allowance, in claiming working families tax credit on return to the UK from an overseas posting.
	(c) We have resolved the problems that some service spouses had encountered, due to the interpretation of residency status, in claiming Child Support Agency payments when on an overseas posting.
	(d) Discussions are taking place with the Department for Education and Skills, and with local education authorities, to see what measures can be taken to improve the schools admissions process for service families.
	(e) Discussions are taking place with the NHS Waiting and Booking Team on the problems service families face when transferring between NHS trust areas.
	(f) Discussions are taking place with the Department for Work and Pensions to identify any problems service families have faced in the claiming of benefits while on overseas postings.
	(g) Since 1 April 2001 service spouses have been able to open Stakeholder pensions while on an overseas posting.

Cluster Bombs

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has been informed by his United States counterpart of the locations in which cluster bombs have been used by US armed forces in Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: We are aware of the targets struck by US cluster bombs in Afghanistan.

Cluster Bombs

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with the US Defence Secretary over the use of cluster bombs.

Geoff Hoon: holding answer 27 November 2001
	I speak to the US Defence Secretary regularly on a number of issues.

Gibraltar

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the closest operational NATO (a) air base and (b) port available to UK forces to Gibraltar is; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The closest Allied air base to Gibraltar that would be available to UK Gibraltar-based aircraft is Beja in Portugal. The closest Allied port available to UK Gibraltar-based forces is Lisbon, although Portima~o, also in Portugal, could be used for smaller ships.

Gibraltar

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what additional operational restrictions are imposed on (a) Royal Navy and RFA Ships, (b) RAF Aircraft and (c) UK troop deployments (i) on visits to and (ii) returning from Gibraltar; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 26 November 2001
	There are restrictions on the direct transit of Royal Navy and FRA ships from Gibraltar to a Spanish port or from a Spanish port to Gibraltar. RAF aircraft on visits to and from Gibraltar are not permitted to over-fly Spanish territory with Gibraltar as the destination or as the airport of departure. UK troops on duty are not allowed across the border from Gibraltar to Spain.

Depleted Uranium

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) armour piercing and (b) hard target penetrator warheads containing depleted uranium have been tested in Wales in each of the last 10 years.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 27 November 2001
	No depleted uranium rounds have been tested in Wales in each of the last 10 years.

War Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the recommendations of the War Pensions Agency's 1999 DMA study were implemented in 2000–01.

Lewis Moonie: Following the recommendations of the 1999 Decision Making Appeals Study the War Pensions Agency worked with ex-Service organisations and the Lord Chancellor's Department to improve war pension appeal legislation and processes, and within the Ministry of Defence to improve the process and time scale for delivery of service documentation.
	Once these improvements were achieved, the recommendations from the study were piloted during 1999–2000 and fully implemented across the Agency during 2000–01.

War Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the recommendations of the 1999 War Pensions Agency Prior Options Review relating to the regulations of the War Pensioners Welfare Service and the partnership opportunities associated with the management of Ilford Park Polish Home were implemented by 31 March.

Lewis Moonie: A review of the objectives of the War Pensioners Welfare Service was undertaken and a report on its findings was widely circulated to the ex-service community in February 2001 inviting comment. The review's recommendations on how welfare services can be developed have received widespread support. As at 28 November 2001, 16 recommendations have been fully implemented, the remainder will be implemented during 2001–02.
	The potential for establishing a partnership with a suitable organisation to provide day-to-day management of Ilford Park Polish Home was reviewed and a report produced in July 2000. The report identified key issues to be addressed and the position is being kept under review.

War Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the service performance standards published in the War Pensions Agency's Service First Charter were achieved in 2000–01.

Lewis Moonie: During 2000–01, the War Pensions Agency achieved all of the standards set out in their Service First Charter. All of the WPA's claims and appeals average clearance time targets were achieved.

War Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the War Pensions Agency met its target to generate efficiency during 2000–01 to absorb the effect of pay and price pressures.

Lewis Moonie: During 2000–01, the War Pensions Agency delivered efficiencies necessary to absorb the effect of pay and price pressures. By adopting a sharply focused and integrated approach to human resources and expenditure management, the agency has been able to implement additional measures to enable operation within its running cost allocation.

War Pensions Agency

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many armed forces personnel have applied to the War Pensions Agency for a war pension; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: A claim for war disablement pension may only be made after discharge from the armed forces. 10,799 claims were received by the War Pensions Agency during the year April 2000 to March 2001; 5,866 claims have been received in the period April 2001 to October 2001.

Unallocated Funds

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate the total unallocated funds within his departmental expenditure limit (a) at the start of the financial year and (b) to date; and what was the month seven forecast on outturn underspend against his departmental expenditure limit in (i) real and (ii) percentage terms.

Geoff Hoon: The allocation of the Ministry of Defence's departmental expenditure limit at the start of the year is set out in "The Government's Expenditure Plans 2001–02 to 2003–04—Ministry of Defence" (Cm 5109). Revised allocations are reported to Parliament in Supplementary Estimates. Outturn against six month forecast for each request for resources will be published on 4 December in the winter Supplementary Estimates Summary Request for Supply as usual.

Benchmark Capabilities

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to reassess the benchmark of capabilities set out in the Strategic Defence Review; what the timescale is for this re-assessment; and if he will make a statement.

Geoff Hoon: The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) left the armed forces well placed to participate in the campaign against international terrorism, but we need to look more closely at asymmetric threats of the kind that we saw on 11 September and ensure that we have the right concepts, forces and capabilities to deal with them.
	I expect to be in a position to publish some conclusions from this work in the spring or early summer of next year.

Afghanistan

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the proposed supporting role of the Territorial Army in Afghanistan.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to theanswer I gave on 13 November 2001, Official Report, columns 630–31W.

Afghanistan

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the decision process for determining which line infantry battalions should be put on increased alert for deployment in Afghanistan.

Geoff Hoon: The infantry battalions originally placed at a reduced notice to move for a possible deployment to Afghanistan were selected from those within the Joint Rapid Reaction Force and reflected their place in the operational and training cycle and their suitability for the possible operations envisaged.

Transferred Employees

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the number of cases that have occurred whereby workers have transferred from an external employer to his Department; and in particular where this has involved (a) dismissal and (b) re-employment.

Lewis Moonie: holding answer 30 November 2001
	This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Major Projects Report

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the capability shortfalls in the areas highlighted by the major projects report 2001, page 13, section 1.25; what steps are being taken to rectify the shortfalls; when he expects the shortfall to be overcome in each area; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: I will write to the hon. Member and a copy of my letter will be placed in the Library of the House following the hearing.

Personnel (Credit Ratings)

Paul Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps are being taken to ensure that service personnel are not (a) given a poor credit risk rating and (b) denied credit as an effect of their membership of the services; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: The granting of credit to an individual is a decision for the credit companies to make. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has held talks with the British Banking Association, the Council of Mortgage Lenders and the Finance Leasing Authority which have assured us that their members do not deny credit to service personnel because of their membership of the armed forces; their credit worthiness is assessed in the same way as for their civilian counterparts. Although some companies will not lend to service personnel who are overseas, there are sufficient companies (including NAAFI) who will do so in order to provide the armed forces with adequate choice. While some service personnel may experience difficulties, I am not aware that obtaining credit represents a significant problem for the armed forces more widely. There is no intention, nor would it be appropriate, for the MOD to involve itself in the decisions taken by private companies on the credit worthiness of armed forces personnel.

Army Recruiters

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what guidance he has given to the MOD on the employment of soldiers on regimental duty to act as recruiters.

Adam Ingram: Only Senior Non-Commissioned Officers appointed to specialist recruiting roles and who have attended the Regular Recruiters Course, run by the Army School of Recruiting, are termed recruiters. While serving with the Recruiting Group of the Army Training and Recruiting Agency they are not serving at Regimental Duty. Officers and Warrant Officers serving at Regimental Duty and who will conduct duties in support of recruiting operations as Team Leaders, undertake specific courses in support of their duties. Others who will serve as members of recruiting teams are given a one-day briefing prior to their deployment. Soldiers involved in the Satisfied Soldier Scheme are briefed by recruiting staff at the local Careers Office where they are deployed.

Honorary Medals

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost of issuing the Queen's Golden Jubilee medal to holders of the George cross and Victoria cross; and if he will make a statement.

Lewis Moonie: It is estimated that the cost to the Ministry of Defence of issuing the Golden Jubilee medal to holders of the Victoria cross and George cross would be in the order of £1,000.00.

Honorary Medals

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the convention under which holders of VC and GC decorations are awarded honorary medals.

Lewis Moonie: The United Kingdom honours system does not include the concept of honorary medals.

PRIME MINISTER

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  how many letters he received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of letters received by him between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Tony Blair: The information is not available in the manner requested. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001 I received approximately 250 letters from Members of Parliament including invitations and requests concerning constituency matters which were dealt with as appropriate.
	I receive about 500,000 items of post per year, and my office works hard to deal with them as efficiently as possible.

General Service Medals

Paul Burstow: To ask the Prime Minister when he expects the Committee on the Grant of Honours, Decorations and Medals to put forward its recommendations in respect of general service medals for those who served during the Suez canal emergency 1951–54.

Tony Blair: I refer the hon. Member to the answer that I gave the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) on 29 November 2001, Official Report, column 1057W.

Intelligence Services Commissioner

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the circumstances in which the Intelligence Services Commissioner could uphold a complaint to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal;
	(2)  what mechanism exists to ensure that the operation of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 is (a) achieving its desired ends and (b) being used in a manner consistent with the safeguards contained in the Act.

Tony Blair: holding answer 27 November 2001
	The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 ensures that there is independent judicial oversight of the powers in the Act. The Act requires the Interception of Communications and Intelligence Services Commissioners to report annually to the Prime Minister on any matters relating to the carrying out of their functions. These reports, excluding, after consultation with the Commissioners, confidential material, are laid before Parliament. Similarly, the Police Act 1997 requires the Chief Surveillance Commissioner to make an annual report to the Prime Minister which is laid before Parliament.
	The Act also requires the Secretary of State to issue codes of practice relating to the performance of the powers and duties under this Act and to which users of the powers must have regard.
	The Investigatory Powers Tribunal investigates complaints in relation to any proceedings incompatible with rights conferred by the ECHR and which concern the use of investigatory powers under the Act. It also considers any complaint by a person who believes that he has been subject to any use of these investigatory powers. The tribunal would determine whether the complainant was subject to such powers and, if so, whether their use was in contravention of the provisions in the Act. The Intelligence Services Commissioner's role in this respect is to provide assistance but only as required by the tribunal.

Cuba

Ian Davidson: To ask the Prime Minister what recent discussions he has had with the US President on the US blockade of Cuba.

Tony Blair: I have not recently discussed the US blockade of Cuba with the US President.

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Internet Access (Clergy)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, if he will increase stipends to take account of the additional costs to the clergy of going on-line.

Stuart Bell: Any additional costs relating to the use of computer and e-mail equipment in the course of clergy duties should be reimbursed through expenses.

Child Care

Caroline Flint: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what resources have been provided to assist the development of child care provision in communities in the past 12 months.

Stuart Bell: None. The Commissioners' primary legal responsibility is the financial support of the parish ministry of the Church of England.

Vandalism

David Taylor: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions he has had with Church leaders in relation to the vulnerability of churches to vandalism.

Stuart Bell: I have had no discussions with Church leaders on this matter as it lies outside the Church Commissioners' and my own area of responsibility.
	In the Church of England, the responsibility for the security of churches and churchyards lies with the individual parish authorities, although the care of individual monuments in churchyards is generally a matter for the family concerned. Advice is available from church insurers, Diocesan Advisory Committees for the Care of Churches and, nationally, from the Council for the Care of Churches. The National Churchwatch scheme also offers seminars on security in churches and the personal safety of those using them.
	The view of both the Church authorities and insurers is that the best safeguard for a church against theft and vandalism is for it to be kept open and in regular use. However, the duty to care for and protect our churches should not solely concern the church authorities but the whole community. Realistic prevention lies in good citizenship not taller walls.

Poverty

David Drew: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, if he will make a statement on levels of poverty among clergy with particular reference to those clergy who are (a) retired and (b) about to retire.

Stuart Bell: Clergy in office are provided with a house and paid a stipend. On retirement, a full service pension from the Church for 37 years' service amounts to two thirds of the National Minimum Stipend and a lump sum of three times the pension. Clergy are responsible for their own housing in retirement but are given assistance through a retirement housing scheme. Clergy also receive a state pension.
	The Clergy Stipends Review Group has recently published a report "Generosity and Sacrifice", which looked at the issue of stipends and pensions. The Group noted that if stipends levels are no better than adequate, the current quantum of pension is not over generous in relation to stipends or in absolute terms. It felt, however, that a number of details of the provision of the pension and stipend scheme were in need of reconsideration. The General Synod at its November sessions agreed that the report should be sent to dioceses for consultation. The responses to that consultation are likely to be considered by General Synod at the end of next year.

Church Repairs (VAT)

Anne McIntosh: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor on the reduction of VAT on church repairs.

Stuart Bell: I have not discussed the matter further with my right hon. Friend the Chancellor recently because we are waiting for the imminent announcement by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport of the details of the VAT reimbursement scheme and how it will operate. The Church has a number of concerns about the funding of the scheme which have yet to be clarified and we will be studying the details of the scheme very closely once these are published.

Church Repairs (VAT)

Joan Walley: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what guidance has been issued in respect of value added tax concessions and listed church buildings.

Stuart Bell: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport will, I understand, shortly announce the details of the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme. The Church of England and other faith groups represented by the Churches Main Committee look forward to the implementation of the Scheme and will want to study the criteria and other aspects of the Scheme following publication.

Bishop of Chichester (Palace)

Norman Baker: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, how much is being spent on the refurbishment of the Bishop of Chichester's palace; for what reason rooms hitherto publicly accessible in the palace are being converted into private rooms; and if he will make a statement.

Stuart Bell: The refurbishment is in fact on-going works, which are partly alterations and partly maintenance and redecoration.
	The alterations are due to the need to improve the office accommodation. This has been re-located from the first floor to a more accessible site on the ground floor and there are consequential changes flowing from that move. The cost of these alterations is approximately £65,000.
	It should be noted that Bishop Kemp's episcopacy lasted 27 years and was unusually long. This resulted in a large number of maintenance and redecoration items being deferred to this scheme of works. The total maintenance cost will be approximately £40,000 and this will cover general maintenance, decorations and safety related items such as upgrading the electrical installation.
	VAT will be additional, although it will not apply to the alterations as the building is listed. The house is a Grade 1 listed building and the quality of work needs to reflect the special status of the building.
	The question also refers to publicly accessible rooms. Bishop Kemp did not use the Tudor room and so it was used occasionally for external functions; for example, an art exhibition was held there once a year. The Tudor room is to resume its original function as the main room for receiving visitors but it will continue to be available to the public by appointment. It is envisaged that the room will also be available for seminars.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Euratom Treaty

Llew Smith: To ask the Solicitor-General what steps Her Majesty's Government intend to take in respect of the reply by the European Commission on 3 September to written question number E-1828/OIEN rejecting the judgment of the British court case, dated 29 March on whether the Euratom Treaty covered military nuclear activities.

Geoff Hoon: I have been asked to reply.
	An Appeal Court hearing is due to take place shortly in respect of this case (Regina v. Environment Agency ex parte Marchiori). The Government note the Commission's views, but their position remains that the Euratom treaty does not apply to military activities.

WALES

Fair Trade

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what fairly traded products, other than tea and coffee, have been purchased by his Department in each of the last five years; and what was their value.

Paul Murphy: My Department has very limited requirements for goods which are subject to fair trade schemes and since coming into existence on 1 July 1999 has not purchased any.

Fair Trade

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the value of fairly traded (a) tea and (b) coffee used in his Department in each of the last five years.

Paul Murphy: My Department has purchased no fairly traded tea or coffee. It has fewer than 50 staff and does not provide snack or canteen facilities.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many letters his Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Paul Murphy: I received three letters from Members of Parliament in this period.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Paul Murphy: The information is set out in the table:
	
		
			 Days Correspondence answered 
		
		
			 Under 15 10 
			 16–19 0 
			 20–29 3 
			 30–39 1 
			 40 or more 1

NORTHERN IRELAND

Plastic Baton Rounds

Joan Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will publish the phase II report by the steering group appointed to lead the research programme aimed at finding an acceptable, effective and less potentially lethal alternative to the plastic baton round.

Jane Kennedy: After consultation with ministerial colleagues in the Home Office and the Ministry of Defence, I have today placed in the Library of the House a copy of the second report compiled by the steering group. The group was set up to take forward two recommendations in the Patten report.
	This report concludes the second phase of a four-phase research programme. It is the most comprehensive analysis of the issues yet published. It reflects both the commitment and the urgency with which Government are progressing the programme aimed both at finding an acceptable, effective and less potentially lethal alternative to the plastic baton round and a broader range of public order equipment.
	The report clearly sets out the priorities in this wide-ranging programme and the timetable for the next phase. It includes work seeking less lethal options as an alternative to the police use of firearms, and the Government are grateful to the Association of Chief Police Officers for its leading role in this area.
	In publishing the report, I am inviting comments on it from interested parties. We shall work closely with the Northern Ireland Policing Board in taking the programme forward.

Murder Campaigns

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) ethnic and (b) religious murder campaigns have taken place in Northern Ireland since 1971.

Jane Kennedy: Paramilitaries from both communities in Northern Ireland do carry out acts of violence and intimidation not only against the other community but also against individuals and groups within their own community. Police investigations of such offences are often hampered when victims generally decline to make a formal complaint.
	It is therefore important that members of communities, within which these attacks are taking place, notify the police if they have any relevant information. They may do so in strict confidence using the Crimestoppers line.
	The Government regularly keep themselves apprised of these acts of paramilitary intimidation and support any measures taken by the police to bring these to an end. These on-going acts of intimidation are symptomatic of the situation prevailing within Northern Ireland.
	The Government have a duty to protect the whole community from the threat of violence from whatever quarter and in whatever form. The Government utterly condemn any form of intimidation by groups on either side of the community.

TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS

Local Government Finance

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the allocation of central Government funds to (a) Aylesbury Vale district council and (b) Buckinghamshire county council in each of the last four years.

Alan Whitehead: Full details of all central Government allocations to county and district councils could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The principal kinds of funding that this Department has provided to Aylesbury Vale district council and Buckinghamshire county council between 1998–99 and 2001–02 are shown in the tables. These include grants and borrowing approvals for revenue and capital expenditure.
	
		Aylesbury Vale district council
		
			 £  
			 Nature of funding 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Revenue support grant (£ million) 3.075 2.802 2.468 3.058 
			 Income from national non-domestic rates (£ million) 4.969 5.382 6.012 6.026 
			 Housing investment programme (£ million) 889 1.033 2.968 (1)5.512 
			 Management and maintenance allowance (housing revenue account subsidy) (2),(3)753.11 (2),(3)765.08 (2),(3)792.24 (2),(3)796.44 
			 Capital receipts initiative (£ million) 1.413 1.247 n/a n/a 
			 Cash incentive scheme (£ million) 0.1 0 n/a n/a 
		
	
	(1) £0.995 million Housing Investment Programme and £4.517 million Major Repairs Allowance
	(2) Management and Maintenance allowance allocations are a more reliable indicator than the amount of subsidy paid which is demand lead and fluctuates according to the number of dwellings in the HRA and the number of tenants entitled to housing benefit
	(3) Per dwelling
	
		Buckinghamshire county council
		
			 £ million  
			 Nature of funding  1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Revenue support grant 102.324 101.353 95.891 111.397 
			 Income from national non-domestic rates 96.628 105.481 119.63 117.618 
			 Rural bus challenge grant(4) 0.100 0.985 0 n/a 
			 Rural bus subsidy grant(5) 0.265 0.561 0.489 0.716 
			 Transport supplementary grant 1.954 1.381 0.066 7.5 
			 Transport annual capital guidelines 1.954 1.381 0.216 0 
			 Transport supplementary credit approval 0.946 1.615 6.029 13.035 
		
	
	(4) Rural Bus Challenge figures represent awards—actual spend profiles for the schemes awarded funding may cover more than one year. 2001–02 awards will be announced shortly
	(5) RBSG figures represent Grant totals actually paid to the authority. 2001–02 figure represents allocation

Channel Tunnel

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 17 July 2001, Official Report, column 97W, on the channel tunnel, whether the draft directives and guidance published on 13 July retain the specific goal to increase freight traffic by 80 per cent.

David Jamieson: Yes.

London Underground

Bridget Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many delays have been caused by signal failures on the Jubilee line since January; and what is the total length of time, in hours, lost as a result.

David Jamieson: Detailed in-year operational information of this nature is a matter for London Underground and I understand that information is not collated in exactly the form requested. However, London Underground advise that, between 7 January and 13 October (the latest date for which figures have been collated), signal failures caused 75 delays of 15 minutes or more on the Jubilee line. The total initial delay resulting from these incidents was 51 hours.

London Underground

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 493W, on London Underground, for what reason the final assessment will be completed under Treasury Investment Appraisal guidelines; if it is his policy to ask Ernst and Young to conduct Monte Carlo simulations as an element of their robustness assessment; if the final agreement with Ernst and Young specified an end date of 17 December; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: London Underground—a publicly owned company—is negotiating contracts to put in place the Government's plans for modernising the Tube. It is clearly appropriate for London Underground to evaluate these contracts in line with Treasury Investment Appraisal guidelines. The answer given to the hon. Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore) on 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 493W, made clear the terms of reference for Ernst and Young's review of London Underground's value for money evaluation of the contracts for the Tube modernisation plans.

Aviation Industry

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to increase support for the airline industry; and if he will make a statement.

David Jamieson: The Government have underwritten, on a temporary basis, third party war risk insurance for UK airlines and service providers to the aviation industry and are considering further support for UK airlines, consistent with European Commission guidelines.

Aviation Industry

Brian H Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans he has to give financial aid to compensate (a) airlines and (b) airports for the four day period after 11 September when US airspace was closed.

Stephen Byers: The Government have underwritten, on a temporary basis, third party war risk insurance for UK airlines and service providers to the aviation industry and are considering whether further support should be made available within European Commission guidelines. The Commission guidelines permit financial aid to be made available only to airlines.

Channel Tunnel Rail Link

Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  how much Government (a) expenditure and (b) investment there has been on (i) research for and (ii) building urban re-development projects associated with the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (A) in total and (B) in each year since the project was first proposed;
	(2)  how much Government (a) expenditure and (b) investment there has been on (i) research for and (ii) building the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (A) in total and (B) in each year since the project was first proposed;
	(3)  how much Government (a) expenditure and (b) investment there has been on (i) research for and (ii) building development projects associated with the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (A) in total and (B) in each year since the project was first proposed.

David Jamieson: The following information is as much as can be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.
	Government expenditure on building the Channel Tunnel Rail Link:
	
		Government expenditure associated with the Channel Tunnel Rail Link
		
			 Year £000 
		
		
			 Building  
			 1995–96 0 
			 1996–97 0 
			 1997–98 0 
			 1998–99 0 
			 1999–2000 0 
			 2000–01 8,550 
			 2001–02 (6)112,562 
			  
			 Total 121,112 
			   
			 Research  
			 1995–96 28 
			 1996–97 10 
			 1997–98 0 
			 1998–99 128 
			 1999–2000 554 
			 2000–01 22 
			 2001–02 (6)104 
			  
			 Total 846 
			   
			 Building development projects  
			 1996–2000 3,180 
			 2000–01 14,680 
			 2001–02 (6)19,947 
			  
			 Total 37,807 
		
	
	(6) To date

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many letters his Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Alan Whitehead: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by Ministers, agency chief executives, Departments and agencies, and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W.
	Between 20 June and 20 July, this Department received 839 letters from right hon. and hon. Members.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Alan Whitehead: The information is not available in the form requested. The information we have is as follows:
	
		Ministerial letters(7)
		
			  From MPs From others 
		
		
			 Number of cases 839 1,178 
			
			 Answered within 15 days   
			 Number 696 1,001 
			 Percentage 83 85 
			 Answered within 20 days   
			 Number 751 1,079 
			 Percentage 90 92 
			
			 Answered within 25 days   
			 Number 784 1,118 
			 Percentage 93 95 
		
	
	(7) 20 June to 20 July
	
		Non-ministerial letters(8),(9)
		
			  Number Percentage 
		
		
			 Cases received 186,689 — 
			 Answered within 15 days 178,661 96 
		
	
	(8) July to September
	(9) This figure represents the total volume of non-ministerial correspondence received by the Department between 1 July and 30 September. The centre of the Department collects this data on a quarterly basis to monitor performance against our Service First target of replying to correspondence within 15 working days

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  when he will reply to the letter to him dated 20 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. James Hamlett;
	(2)  when he intends to reply to the letter to him dated 20 September from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. James Hamlett.

John Spellar: I replied to my right hon. Friend's letter on Thursday 29 November.

Rail Regulator

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  when he last met the Rail Regulator since 5 October; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when he last met the Rail Regulator.

David Jamieson: The Secretary of State last met Tom Winsor on 5 October.

London-Norwich Rail Line

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what rail improvement projects are included in the Railtrack Network Management Statement on the London to Norwich line; and by when they will be completed.

David Jamieson: The 2001 Network Management Statement includes the installation on this route of the Train Protection Warning System as part of the national programme. I understand that planned work on signal fitments is due to be completed by 31 March 2003.

Vehicle Design Standards

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will take steps to limit vehicle performance by the introduction of mandatory design standards for vehicles.

David Jamieson: There is already a requirement in Great Britain to limit the performance of the heavier goods and passenger vehicles by fitting top-speed limiters. This requirement applies to vehicles having a maximum gross weight exceeding 7.5 tonnes. The relevant legislation is contained in Regulations 36A and 36B of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986. The Government are currently arguing the United Kingdom's corner with our European partners on a European Commission proposal to extend the requirement for top-speed limiters to goods vehicles exceeding 3.5 tonnes in maximum gross weight, and to vehicles used for the carriage of passengers comprising more than eight seats in addition to the driver.

RenewCo

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what advice the ONS gave his Department on the treatment of RenewCo in the national accounts.

Stephen Byers: holding answer 27 November 2001
	The Office for National Statistics informed the Treasury that the RenewCo proposals would be classified as public sector borrowing.

Rent Restructuring

Iain Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what further plans he has to consult tenants regarding the introduction of rent restructuring from April 2002; and if he will make a statement.

Sally Keeble: A number of tenants organisations responded to the consultation on the Housing Green Paper last year, and to the consultation this year on proposals to change Housing Revenue Account subsidy to take account of rent restructuring. We are pressing ahead with rent restructuring from April 2002. We will monitor the impact and maintain a dialogue with all interested parties, including tenants groups, about the issues arising on the implementation of the policy as it develops. It would be for local authorities and registered social landlords to consult their tenants about the rents they propose to set from April 2002.

Best Value

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the relative success of best value performance indicators which depend on the measurement of (a) inputs, (b) outputs and (c) outcomes;
	(2)  which of the best value performance indicators (a) apply to the Council of the Isles of Scilly and (b) do not apply because of (i) its size, (ii) its geographical location and (iii) other reasons;
	(3)  which of the best value performance indicators measure (a) inputs, (b) outputs and (c) outcomes;
	(4)  what assessment he has made of the applicability of best value indicators to local authorities, with particular reference to size of authority.

Alan Whitehead: The Best Value Performance Indicators have been designed to provide a rounded view of local government's performance. They reflect the resources devoted to the different services, the efficiency with which those resources are used, the quality of the services and service users' experience. They therefore include a mix of indicators which measure inputs, outputs and outcomes; the intention is to rely increasingly on outcome indicators whenever these can be clearly identified. The number of indicators against which an authority is required to report depends on the nature of an authority and the number of services it delivers. For 2001–02 unitary and metropolitan authorities are required to report performance on up to 123 indicators while for district councils the maximum number of indicators is 68. These will be reduced for 2002–03.
	The Best Value Performance Indicators provide valuable information about the performance of individual authorities and enable local people to view the performance of their own authority alongside that of similar authorities. They will also track performance changes over time. Once best value performance plans are published in 2002 it will be possible to assess change over the two years that best value has been in place.
	The Council of the Isles of Scilly is required to report on those services which it provides to local people. I understand that the Council has agreed to design a set of indicators appropriate to its circumstances, and will need to discuss these with the District Auditor.

Best Value

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what timetable he has set for implementing the results of his review of the operation of best value for local government.

Alan Whitehead: The Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions announced on 1 October a three month review of the best value regime for local authorities aimed at improving the quality of services. A review group, under the chairmanship of the Minister for Local Government and the Regions, has been set up to take this work forward. The review group has been asked to report to the Secretary of State by the end of this year. The Secretary of State will consider its report early in the new year and respond to its recommendations. The timetable for implementing any measures announced in his response will depend on their nature, but the intention is to act as quickly as possible ahead of the 2002–03 financial year.

Best Value

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what was the estimated cost in the latest available year of the best value regime to (a) central Government Departments, (b) local government, (c) fire authorities and (d) non-department public bodies and executive agencies.

Alan Whitehead: (a) For the financial year 2001–02, £1,751,000 has been allocated for administrative costs associated with best value in central Government.
	(b) £52 million has been allocated in 2001–02 by DTLR to cover the cost of best value audit and inspection in England. £21.7 million of this will be paid as grant to the Audit Commission and the remainder has been distributed through the Revenue Support Grant to cover the cost of audit fees charged to local authorities. No reliable estimates exist as to the other administrative costs incurred by authorities in complying with their duty under the Local Government Act 1999.
	(c) Fire authorities precept from county councils and are thus included in the figures.
	(d) The Audit Commission is the only NDPB with a formal role in best value. Their costs are met by DTLR as indicated.

Light Rail Schemes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the average cost is in (a) overall terms and (b) cost per mile of light rail schemes (i) under consideration by the Government and (ii) in development.

Sally Keeble: The capital costs of light rail lines will depend on a significant number of factors. These include land prices, whether the route is segregated or contains street running sections, the degree of double tracking along a section of route, whether there is a need for major works such as tunnels or bridges as well as the extent of wider impacts such as utility diversions. Cost figures will also include vehicles. An average cost figure per kilometre across all schemes is therefore not particularly meaningful. The table sets out a very crude calculation of the capital cost per kilometre of light rail schemes that are currently under development using the latest figures for the overall capital costs of the relevant scheme divided by the length of the route. The figures are given in cash terms.
	
		£ million 
		
			 Scheme Overall capital cost Capital cost per km 
		
		
			 Sunderland Extension to Tyne and Wear Metro(10) 100 5.41 
			 Nottingham Express Transit(11) 149 13.8 
			 Manchester Metrolink phase 3(12) 513 8.9 
			 Leeds Supertram: three lines(12) 484 17.3 
			 South Hampshire Light Rail(12) 190 13.3 
			 Merseytram 215 11.3 
			 Stockport extension to Manchester Metrolink 61.5 7.24 
			 Midland Metro extensions to Birmingham centre and Wednesbury to Brierly Hill 165 11.1 
			 Bristol and South Glos. light rail 190 11.2 
		
	
	(10) Due to open March 2002
	(11) Due to open in 2003
	(12) Construction to start in 2003

Light Rail Schemes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 498W, on light rail and tram schemes, which other schemes could open before 2006.

Sally Keeble: In view of the need to obtain powers under the Transport and Works Act, to carry out a tendering process and to construct the new lines, we do not currently expect lines other than those identified in my previous reply to be open by 2006

Light Rail Schemes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the average estimated length of time is from first submission of a proposal to the Department to completion of a new light rail project independent of an existing system.

Sally Keeble: Light rail systems typically take many years of planning and promoters are encouraged to discuss their ideas with the Department at an early stage. Accordingly, it is hard to identify precisely first submission of a proposal. The table shows the period between funding being approved and the opening of schemes in operation.
	
		
			 Scheme Year of firm funding approval Year opened 
		
		
			 Croydon 1997 2000 
			 Midland Metro 1995 1999 
			 South Yorkshire Supertram 1990 1994–95 
			 Manchester Metrolink line 1 1989 1992

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on Railtrack's cashflow position.

David Jamieson: The cashflow of Railtrack plc is being managed by the administrator, to ensure the continued operations of the company, drawing down from the loan agreement that was put in place at the time of the administration, as necessary.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if Railtrack will be permitted to raise investment funding from any other source apart from the Government during the administration period.

David Jamieson: Under paragraph 8.1.10 of the loan agreement, made available to the administrator, the administrator has the power to raise or borrow money.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what public subsidy to Railtrack in administration has been requested by the administrator for the period 7 October to the end of the 2001–02 financial year.

David Jamieson: There is no public subsidy being provided to Railtrack in administration. Funding for Railtrack plc in administration is being provided through a commercial loan agreement, copies of which are in the House Library.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimates the Railtrack administrator has made of the final cost of completing the west coast main line modernisation.

David Jamieson: A number of options for taking the project forward are currently under discussion. Until these discussions have been concluded, and final outputs agreed, an estimated cost of completion will not be known.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what was the most recent estimate by Railtrack of the total cost of the west coast main line modernisation prior to administration.

David Jamieson: Railtrack's 2001 Network Management Statement, published in May, estimated the cost of the project at £6.3 billion.

Railtrack

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what procedures the Government are putting in place to ensure that routine (a) track and (b) signal maintenance is carried on a scheduled basis during the period of administration.

David Jamieson: This is a matter for the administrator. The Government will continue to provide the administrator with sufficient funding to ensure the rail network operates on a "business as usual" basis during the administration period.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 496W, on Railtrack, what his Department's assessment of the value of the assets of Railtrack plc was as at 5 October.

Stephen Byers: The Department assessed the cash-flows that the assets would generate, and concluded that they would be insufficient to cover Railtrack's debt liability payments.

Railtrack

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 21 November 2001, Official Report, column 277W, on Railtrack, what his Department's estimate of the cash needs of Railtrack plc in administration is in addition to the £3.5 billion already identified.

Stephen Byers: The cash needs of Railtrack plc in administration will depend on how long it remains in administration.

Railtrack

John Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what is the credit rating of Railtrack bonds.

John Spellar: Railtrack bonds currently have a long term credit rating of BB+ from Standard & Poor's and Baa1 from Moody's Investors Service.

Railtrack

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to his answer of 26 November 2001, Official Report, column 606W, on Railtrack, how many Railtrack shares were held by (a) individual and (b) institutional investors at flotation and in each subsequent year.

David Jamieson: The number 1 of shares in Railtrack Group plc held by individual and institutional investors at flotation on 20 May 1996 and in each subsequent year—as detailed in the Annual Report and Accounts—is shown in the table.
	
		Million 
		
			  Individual Institutional 
		
		
			 20 May 1996 290 210 
			 24 April 1997 170 325 
			 5 May 1998 150 355 
			 30 April 1999 115 390 
			 5 May 2000 90 420 
			 1 May 2001 90 430 
		
	
	(13) Figures rounded to the nearest 5 million

Railtrack

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what the average Railtrack shareholding of individual investors was in each year since flotation.

David Jamieson: This information is not available to the Department.

Railtrack

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions in (a) cash and (b) percentage terms, what profit including dividends received a Railtrack investor would have made in selling a single share bought at flotation when its value was at (i) its highest, (ii) its lowest and (iii) its average level.

David Jamieson: The gross returns on a single share bought at flotation for £3.80 and sold at the highest ever, lowest ever and average closing price of Railtrack shares are provided in the table.
	
		
			 Value of share at sale Sale price minus flotation price (£) Dividends received before date of sale (£) Gross cash return on flotation price (£) Gross percentage return on flotation price 
		
		
			 Highest value on 23 November 1998 = £17.68 13.88 0.60 14.48 381 
			 Lowest value on 20 September 2001 = £2.52 -1.28 1.40 0.12 3 
			 Average value between 20 May 1996 and 5 October 2001 = £9.15 5.35 (14)1.13 6.48 171 
		
	
	(14) Shares were traded at the average daily share price several times, all falling in the 2000–01 financial year. Dividend payments therefore assume that the share was sold in 2000–01.
	The returns do not take account of any tax liabilities or transaction charges paid by individual investors.

Railtrack

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what proportion of Railtrack shares were held by institutional investors on (a) 1 May and (b) the first of each month up to 1 October.

David Jamieson: The proportion of shares in Railtrack Group plc held by institutional investors on 1 May 2001—as detailed in the Annual Report and Accounts—was 83 per cent. Information on the proportion held on the first of each month up to 1 October is not available to the Department.

Airtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what his policy is on the Airtrack proposal.

David Jamieson: The Strategic Rail Authority is sponsoring a demand study to establish numbers of air passengers and domestic (non-airport) users who might use an Airtrack service. Work on this is well advanced, and in the new year we hope to take a view on the next stage of development of the Airtrack proposal.
	We are proposing to issue a consultation paper on airport policy in general early in the new year, and this will include consideration of public transport access to airports.

Speeding

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he intends to publish revised guidance to highways authorities on speed policy.

David Jamieson: The Transport Act 2000 committed the Government to consider the development of a rural road hierarchy for speed management purposes. I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hyndburn (Mr. Pope) on 28 November 2001, Official Report, columns 942–43W.
	In addition, the first year report executive summary on the cost recovery system for traffic safety cameras was published on 13 August. Copies were placed in the Libraries of the House.

Local Authority Websites

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what action his Department recently has taken to promote good practice in the creation and development of local authority websites;
	(2)  what measures he has taken to ensure that local authority websites are accessible to those with a range of disabilities; and which organisations have been consulted.

Alan Whitehead: We have made available £350 million of funding as part of our drive to ensure that all local authorities achieve 100 per cent. electronic service delivery capability by 2005. In 2001–02 this funding is being used to support 24 local authority pathfinders (with a further pathfinder being funded under the Invest to Save Budget) in a programme of innovation and shared learning. Many of the pathfinders are developing interactive websites, which other councils can then use as a model to create their own.
	We are also in the process of developing guidance for local authorities on how they design their websites. This guidance will cover accessibility for people with disabilities, and we will consult widely when the draft document is published next year.

Energy Saving

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what recent measures he has taken to ensure that buildings insulation targets are met.

Alan Whitehead: The Building (Amendment) Regulations 2001 were laid before Parliament on 11 October 2001, and come into force on 1 April 2002. Their supporting approved documents published on 31 October give guidance on the building insulation targets that are to be met. These significantly increase the building insulation standards that apply whenever building work is carried out.

Special Advisers

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the special advisers in his Department.

Alan Whitehead: The Department's special advisers are:
	Dan Corry
	Michael Dugher
	Jo Moore.

Departmental Expenditure

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when he expects to spend the £920 million that was allocated to his Department for 2000–01 but not spent.

Alan Whitehead: The 2000–01 underspend on the DETR Main Programmes Departmental Expenditure Limit became available for use in following years in accordance with the end-year flexibility arrangements (the set of rules by which Departments are allowed to carry forward unspent budget from one year to the next). The entitlement generated from 2000–01 and previous years was announced in Table 6 of Public Expenditure 2000–2001 Provisional Outturn (Cm 5243). £516 million end-year flexibility take up is being sought in the Winter Supplementary Estimates for the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions; £93 million has been transferred to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (as part of machinery of government changes) and further take-up will be sought in the spring Supplementary Estimates. Any unused end-year flexibility will be carried forward into future years.

Departmental Expenditure

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will estimate the total unallocated funds within his departmental expenditure limit (a) at the start of the financial year and (b) to date; and what was the month seven forecast on outturn underspend against his departmental expenditure limit in (i) real and (ii) percentage terms.

Alan Whitehead: The Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions Departmental Annual Report for 2001 (Cm 5105) contains the Departmental Unallocated Provision (DUP) set for the present financial year in table A6a. Draw-down of the DUP has been reported to Parliament in the Winter Supplementary Estimates for the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions presented on 29 November. Outturn against six month forecast for each Request for Resources will be published in the Winter Supplementary Estimates Summary Request for Supply as usual.

Train Operating Companies

Peter Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what estimate he has made of the revenue lost (a) to each of the train operating companies and (b) in total in each of the last five years resulting from shortages of (i) booking office staff, (ii) ticket machines and (iii) on-board conductors to collect fares.

David Jamieson: No such estimate has been made. This is a matter for the train operating companies.

Portable Buildings

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions in relation to Statutory Instrument 2718 and the accompanying guidelines, what discussions his Department has had with all other Government Departments on the number of portable buildings they use which will have to be disposed of after five years; and what the estimated cost to public funds of disposing and replacing these units will be.

Sally Keeble: Statutory Instrument 2718 is The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (England) Order 2001. This order amends the planning guidelines relating to telecommunications masts, and has no relevance to portable buildings. There have thus been no such discussions with other Government Departments, or estimates made, in relation to this Statutory Instrument.
	However, the hon. Member did raise the issue of portable buildings in the debate in the Second Standing Committee on Delegated Legislation on 21 November 2001 which considered the Prayer against both Statutory Instrument 2718 and Statutory Instrument 3335, The Building (Amendment) Regulations 2001. The Approved Document to Part L2 of the Building Regulations, which Statutory Instrument 3335 amended, gives guidance on how portable buildings may meet the requirements of Part L2 of the Regulations under the heading "Buildings constructed from sub-assemblies".
	There is nothing in the guidance in the Approved Document that indicates that portable buildings will have to be disposed of after five years. It indicates that there are no restrictions at all on portable buildings that are moved from one place to another on the same site. With regard to buildings moved from one site to another the guidance is that a building constructed from external fabric sub-assemblies obtained from other premises or from a stock manufactured before 31 December 2001, would normally be considered to meet the requirement if the fabric thermal resistance or the prospective annual energy use will be no worse than the relevant performance standards given in the 1995 edition of Approved Document L.
	It would thus have been inappropriate to have discussions, in relation to this Statutory Instrument and its supporting Approved Documents, with other Government Departments on the number of portable buildings they use which will have to be disposed of after five years, and what the estimated cost to public funds of disposing and replacing these units will be.

Bus Safety

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what criteria determine the number of passengers permitted to stand on a scheduled bus; and how many people standing are permitted on an (a) 48 seater and (b) 53 seater bus.

David Jamieson: Every public service vehicle must have a Certificate of Initial Fitness on which is specified the maximum number of seated and standing passengers.
	The Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984 prohibit the carriage of any standing passengers on:
	(a) a vehicle with a seating capacity of less than 13 passengers;
	(b) a vehicle with a gangway any part of the height of which is less than 1.77 metre;
	(c) a half decked vehicle.
	Where a vehicle is permitted to carry standing passengers the criteria used to establish the number is as follows: the total number of standing passengers carried on a single deck vehicle or the lower deck of a double-decked vehicle shall not exceed the number obtained by dividing by 1,900 the total floor area of that deck (in square centimetres) available to standing passengers. The floor area for calculation shall not include:
	(a) any space occupied by a seat or within 225mm of the front of a seat required for the accommodation of seated passengers;
	(b) any area which is within 225mm of the top of a step;
	(c) any step and any space within 225mm of an entrance or exit other than a Secondary Emergency Exit or an exit required by Regulation 21(11) of the Public Service Vehicles (Conditions of Fitness, Equipment, Use and Certification) Regulations 1981. The space being measured from the outside edge of the vehicle and having the same width as the opening;
	(d) any space forward of a transverse plane that touches the rear of the driver's seat when it is located in its rearmost position;
	(e) any space on the higher level of a split level floor which is within 225mm of the edge of any unprotected step in the change of levels;
	(f) any space which does not have access to a gangway as specified in sub-paragraph (g);
	(g) any part of a gangway which is not at least 450mm wide at all levels;
	(h) any space in which it is not possible to inscribe a square having 355mm sides.
	The number of standing and seated passengers is required to be marked on the vehicle but the operator can, if he so wishes, use a lower number than that established by the above procedure.
	It is not possible to give a general answer to the cases of a 48 seat vehicle and 53 seat vehicle as the above criteria may be different for each design.

Illegal Meat Imports

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what discussions he has had with other Government Departments on the (a) level of illegal meat imports to the UK and (b) effectiveness of port controls and enforcement measures, in respect of his own Department's responsibility in overseeing local authority ports and airports.

David Jamieson: Local authority ownership of certain ports and airports does not result in any DTLR responsibility in relation to meat imports. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs leads the Government's work in this area. Officials from my Department take part in discussions with DEFRA as necessary.

Holiday Accommodation

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what was the total number of dwellings in each local authority in England and Wales in the last four years for which figures are available for which a business rate was payable in respect of their use as holiday accommodation.

Alan Whitehead: The number of premises in England which are subject to non-domestic rates and let as self-catering holiday homes in the last four years is as follows:
	
		
			 Year Number 
		
		
			 1998–99 14,607 
			 1999–2000 14,589 
			 2000–01 15,145 
			 2001–02 15,398 
		
	
	While most of these premises are homes, the figures do include accommodation units that are purpose built for holiday letting and could not be used as homes. It is not possible to segregate these two types of property. The figures do not include premises where it is not intended that the property is let as holiday accommodation for more than 140 days in a year as these are subject to council tax and not to non-domestic rates.
	I will write separately to the hon. Member with equivalent figures for each local authority in England.
	The rating of holiday accommodation in Wales is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.

Council Tax

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what level of total council tax discount was made in each local authority in England and Wales for the last five years for which figures are available in respect of (a) furnished second residences privately owned for recreational investment or other private purposes, (b) all categories of privately owned empty properties, whether furnished or substantially unfurnished, (c) properties available to the armed forces or visiting forces accommodation, (d) halls of residence and (e) other categories subject to a 50 per cent. discount; and what was the total amount.

Alan Whitehead: The information is not available in the breakdown requested, and reliable estimates are not available for individual local authorities.
	The council tax bill for a dwelling that is no-one's main home, or where all the occupants are disregarded for council tax purposes is currently reduced by 50 per cent. in each local authority in England. In 2001–02 in England 588,942 properties were entitled to a 50 per cent. discount, at a total estimated cost of £220 million. Of this total, it is estimated that £80 million relates to second homes, £125 million relates to empty homes and £15 million relates to dwellings where all the occupants are disregarded.
	In addition, the following classes of dwellings prescribed in legislation are exempt from council tax:
	Class A
	Exemption for: Empty and substantially unfurnished dwellings where works are required, under way or recently completed (valid for up to 12 months)
	Class B
	Exemption for: Empty dwellings owned by charities
	Class C
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty and substantially unfurnished (valid for up to 6 months)
	Class D
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by prisoners
	Class E
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by patients in hospitals and care homes
	Class F
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by deceased persons
	Class G
	Exemption for: Dwellings where occupation is prohibited by public law
	Class H
	Exemption for: Empty clergy dwellings
	Class I
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by people receiving care
	Class J
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by people providing care
	Class K
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by students
	Class L
	Exemption for: Repossessed dwellings
	Class M
	Exemption for: Halls of residence
	Class N
	Exemption for: Dwellings occupied only by students or school leavers
	Class O
	Exemption for: Armed forces' accommodation
	Class P
	Exemption for: Visiting forces' accommodation
	Class Q
	Exemption for: Dwellings left empty by bankrupts
	Class R
	Exemption for: Empty caravan pitches and boat moorings
	Class S
	Exemption for: Dwellings occupied by minors only
	Class T
	Exemption for: Empty annexes which cannot be let separately
	Class U
	Exemption for: Dwellings occupied only by persons who are severely mentally impaired
	Class W
	Exemption for: Annexes occupied by dependent relatives.
	In 2001–02, 646,128 properties in England were exempt from paying council tax at a total estimated cost of £480 million. Of this total, we estimate that £50 million relates to accommodation for armed forces or visiting forces, and £15 million relates to halls of residence.
	"Council Tax: A consultation paper on proposed changes for second homes and long term empty homes" was published by DTLR on 23 November 2001. This paper invites views on a range of proposed changes to council tax discounts and exemptions in England, and includes questions on how best to define second homes and long-term empty homes.
	Operation of the council tax system in Wales is a devolved matter for the National Assembly for Wales.

Council Tax

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the anticipated average percentage change in Band D council tax in England in 2002–03.

Alan Whitehead: Decisions on council tax are for local authorities to take, after consulting with their local electorate and taxpayers.

Council Tax

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made of the likely use of his reserve powers to regulate council tax set by English local authorities in 2002–03.

Alan Whitehead: Decisions on council tax are for local authorities to take, after consulting with their local electorate and taxpayers. This Government do not operate a system of crude and universal pre-announced capping.

Council Tax

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the circumstances in which the Government would use their reserve powers to regulate the Greater London Authority council tax precept.

Alan Whitehead: Decisions on the GLA council tax precept are for the GLA to take, after consulting with their local electorate and taxpayers. This Government do not operate a system of crude and universal pre-announced capping.

Council Tax

Malcolm Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what impact the heightened state of alert against terrorism will have on the level of council tax in English local authorities in the context of increased civil defence and emergency planning expenditure; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: Decisions on council tax levels are a matter for local authorities after consulting with their local electorate and taxpayers. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer last week made available an additional £30 million towards the extra security pressures on police authorities in England and Wales for 2001–02.

Council Tax

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what action the Government are taking in respect of the charging of council tax on empty homes.

Alan Whitehead: "Council Tax: A consultation paper on proposed changes for second homes and long term empty homes" was published by DTLR on Friday 23 November.
	Copies of this consultation paper have been placed in the House of Commons Library and can be found at www.local.dtlr.gov.uk/finance/ctax/2homes

Right to Buy

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will curtail the right to buy in areas covered by urban regeneration initiatives.

Sally Keeble: No. As we said last year in our Housing Green Paper "Quality and Choice: a decent home for all", we do not intend to make any further significant changes to the right to buy scheme.

Road Schemes

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the road schemes costing more than £5 million initiated in England and Wales since 1997 which are complete.

David Jamieson: The following information covers England only. The provision of road schemes within Wales is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
	The following road schemes in England costing more than £5 million have been completed as a result of decisions made since 1997 to begin construction on them:
	Trunk Roads
	A1 Tempsford Junction Improvements
	A50 Derby Southern Bypass (Contract B)
	M60 Denton-Middleton Contract 3
	Local Roads
	A6002/A6007 Coventry Lane Imp.
	Seaham Town Centre Link
	Bridgwater Northern Distributor Road.
	Further trunk and local roads are currently under construction and will be opening over the course of the next two years and many more will follow as schemes accepted as part of local transport settlements or which have been added to the Government's targeted programme of improvements complete their statutory procedures.

A41

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the Highways Agency's plans to cut back vegetation obscuring vision at the A41 roundabout at High Street and Stocklake, Aylesbury;
	(2)  when he expects the Highways Agency to replace missing signposts at the (a) A41 Henley roundabout at the left turn into Haydon Road and Weedon Road, Aylesbury, and (b) A41 High Street, Aylesbury, by Vale Park.

David Jamieson: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Highways Agency, Tim Matthews, to write to the hon. Member about these operational issues affecting the A41 trunk road.
	Letter from Tim Matthews to Mr. David Lidington, dated 3 December 2001
	The Transport Minister, David Jamieson, has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the A41 in Aylesbury.
	The signs situated at the left turn into Haydon Road and Weedon Road at the Henley Roundabout, Aylesbury and the High Street, Aylesbury, by Vale Park were subject to vandalism and in one case accidental collision. I am pleased to inform you that replacement signs are currently being manufactured and will be erected by mid December.
	Work to cut back vegetation on roundabouts is undertaken as a matter of routine during the winter pruning maintenance period between now and March. Where there is a particular safety concern immediate action is taken. The roundabout on the A41 at High Street and Stocklake, Aylesbury was not considered to be a cause for concern in terms of safety. However, the roundabout has been inspected again and there is now ivy growing over a directional sign, which will be removed as a matter of urgency.
	I hope this reply is helpful.

Fire Authorities (Radio Systems)

Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what advice his Department issues to fire authorities on the need to ensure interoperability of radio systems with other emergency services.

Alan Whitehead: There is existing Home Office guidance on inter-agency communications at the scene of operational incidents.
	The fire service in England and Wales is currently procuring replacement wide area radio systems. The agreed operational requirement is that replacement systems must support effective inter-working between neighbouring fire brigades and must also provide an effective and continuing interface with the police and with the emergency ambulance service.

Roads (SSAs)

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will list the changes made to the (a) measurements and (b) methodology used for determining the length of roads as used for the purposes of standard spending assessments for local authorities since 1997.

Alan Whitehead: In calculating Standard Spending Assessments (SSAs) for 1996–97 to 2001–02 the lengths of roads used have been estimated from local authority returns, to the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR). Over this period DTLR (or its predecessor Departments) has made no change to the method of determining the lengths of minor roads. The Department does not hold central information on whether individual authorities have changed the basis they use for recording these lengths. Starting with the calculation of 2001–02 SSAs DTLR's Transport Statistics Roads Division (TSR) have used Geographical Information System (GIS) data to make comparisons between data from local authorities and their own major road network data, ironing out differences between the two, such as the elimination of the double-counting of dual carriageways by some authorities. This exercise has now been completed in time for the 2002–03 SSAs and the major road length estimates for this settlement are based on these data. No announcement has yet been made regarding the basis for minor road lengths to be used in 2002–03 SSAs. This will form part of the forthcoming consultation announcement on the provisional local government finance settlement.

Roads (SSAs)

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will publish the total mileage of roads for each local authority used for the purposes of calculating standard spending assessments for each year since 1997 including the figures for 2001–02.

Alan Whitehead: The total length of roads, in kilometres, comprising of principal and minor roads, used to calculate SSAs for each local authority for the years 1996–97 to 2002–02 has been placed in the House of Commons Library.

Road Safety (Horses)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on road safety and horses; and whether he plans regulating changes on this subject.

David Jamieson: We have no plans for regulations affecting the safety of horseriders. We are, however, concerned that road users should understand their vulnerability and give them due consideration on the road. We are considering publicity to increase public awareness of the need to be careful around horses.

Air Traffic

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what his estimate is of the downturn in transatlantic air traffic in the period between September 2001 and September 2002.

David Jamieson: holding answer 30 November 2001
	UK and US airlines have reduced capacity on some transatlantic routes since 11 September. Scheduled UK and US carriers have filed proposals with my Department which indicate plans to operate 0.7 per cent. fewer frequencies in summer 2002 compared with 2001.

Radioactive Material

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many crashes occurred involving (a) road vehicles, (b) aircraft and (c) trains carrying radioactive material in the UK in each year from 1997 to date.

David Jamieson: Information on accidents and incidents involving the transport of radioactive material in the UK is published annually. The reports covering events in each year have been placed in the House Library.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, if the £239 million allocated for rural bus service improvements includes the £15 million in the parish transport fund.

Sally Keeble: The £239 million allocated for rural transport over the next three years includes the Countryside Agency's £15 million parish transport fund.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, which changes ensure the revised PPG13 will develop the role of market towns as hubs for jobs and services.

Sally Keeble: Our new planning policy guidance for transport (PPG13) sets out how local authorities in rural areas should plan for new development to be primarily sited at the most accessible locations in the local area. In remote locations, well away from large urban areas most development, including for jobs and services, should be located at local service centres. These centres will include market towns and are expected to be the focal points for services in the countryside. Local service centres should be designated in the development plans prepared by local authorities. These plans form the framework within which decisions on proposals for development are taken.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, if he will list (a) the organisations which received funds and (b) the amount that they received to fund improvements for rural bus services in 2001–02; and what proportion of the fund has been allocated to improve rural bus services in 2002–03.

Sally Keeble: Local authorities have received the following amounts in rural bus grant to date in 2001–02 through the rural bus subsidy grant and rural bus challenge schemes.
	
		
			 Local Authority Payments to date (£) 
		
		
			 Bath & NE Somerset 71,492 
			 Bedfordshire 512,742 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 19,933 
			 Bracknell Forest 20,450 
			 Bristol 5,410 
			 Buckinghamshire 286,599 
			 Cambridgeshire 706,378 
			 Cheshire 313,006 
			 Cornwall 623,684 
			 Cumbria 1,196,144 
			 Darlington 43,219 
			 Derbyshire 364,752 
			 Devon 990,684 
			 Dorset 717,498 
			 Durham 540,339 
			 East Riding 619,349 
			 East Sussex 966,752 
			 Essex 1,440,828 
			 Gloucestershire 698,377 
			 Greater Manchester 67,585 
			 Halton 6,479 
			 Hampshire 1,320,239 
			 Hartlepool 15,081 
			 Herefordshire 508,519 
			 Hertfordshire 484,304 
			 Isle of Wight 81,351 
			 Kent 851,887 
			 Lancashire 780,725 
			 Leicestershire 776,664 
			 Lincolnshire 1,067,597 
			 Medway 78,189 
			 Merseyside 42,636 
			 Middlesbrough 5,895 
			 Milton Keynes 166,120 
			 NE Lincolnshire 38,124 
			 Norfolk 1,500,147 
			 North Lincolnshire 344,434 
			 North Somerset 67,858 
			 North Yorkshire 1,213,987 
			 Northamptonshire 701,499 
			 Northumberland 779,618 
			 Nottinghamshire 652,363 
			 Oxfordshire 828,512 
			 Peterborough 73,518 
			 Plymouth 4,983 
			 Redcar & Cleveland 48,857 
			 Rutland 54,657 
			 Shropshire 801,616 
			 Somerset 519,856 
			 South Gloucestershire 171,095 
			 South Yorkshire 608,689 
			 Staffordshire 807,230 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 29,280 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 4,836 
			 Suffolk 1,253,255 
			 Surrey 949,883 
			 Swindon 49,848 
			 Telford and The Wrekin 67,518 
			 Thurrock 116,499 
			 Torbay 117,725 
			 Tyne and Wear 693,737 
			 Warrington 53,313 
			 Warwickshire 668,483 
			 West Berkshire 118,806 
			 West Midlands 44,335 
			 West Sussex 517,826 
			 West Yorkshire 705,668 
			 Wiltshire 1,160,774 
			 Windsor & Maidenhead 45,214 
			 Wokingham 69,216 
			 Worcestershire 1,102,672 
			 York 65,444 
			 Total 33,442,284 
		
	
	A total of £68 million will be available for rural bus grants in 2002–03. Allocations of rural bus subsidy grant to local authorities for 2002–03 and the decisions on the 2001 rural bus challenge competition will be announced shortly.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew), of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, what the criteria are for mandatory 50 per cent. rate relief for non-agricultural enterprises on farms; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Whitehead: Under the Rating (Former Agricultural Premises and Rural Shops) Act 2001, 50 per cent. mandatory rate relief is available to any rateable non- domestic property with a rateable value of no more than £6,000. This is provided that it consists wholly or mainly of land or buildings which were subject to the agricultural exemption from rates for at least 183 days during the one year period immediately preceding the date on which the rate relief scheme came into effect. The scheme came into effect in England on 15 August 2001. It has yet to be commenced in Wales, which is a matter for the National Assembly for Wales. The scheme will run for five years from commencement, when it will be reviewed and can be extended by Order. If the scheme is extended, each property will be eligible for relief up to five years from when it first received the relief.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew), of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, what changes have been made to ensure the revised PPG7 will develop farm diversification.

Sally Keeble: We revised our planning policies for the countryside (PPG7) to reflect the importance this Government attach to effective planning for sustainable farm diversification projects. Local planning authorities are expected to be supportive of well-conceived farm diversification schemes for business purposes that are consistent in their scale with their rural location.
	PPG7 should be taken into account by local authorities in preparing their development plans which form the framework within which decisions on proposals for development are taken. The guidance may also be material to decisions on individual planning applications and appeals.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew), of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, how many new affordable homes in rural settlements were occupied in 2001–02.

Sally Keeble: Information is not available in the form requested.
	New affordable homes in rural settlements in England with a population of 3,000 or less are funded by the Housing Corporation and local authorities or through the planning system without public subsidy.
	From 1 April to 31 October 2001, 379 affordable homes in rural settlements were approved, and 270 were completed, under the Housing Corporation's Approved Development Programme. Local authorities approved 142 units and completed 82 units in the same period.

Flood Defence Levy

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will base SSA in respect of the flood defence levy on actual payments requested in 2002–03.

Alan Whitehead: An authority's SSA for flood defence is based on expenditure, including levies, from past years. This is subject to scaling back to match the agreed national SSA total for flood defence.
	The Government have announced that although we review local government finance, we will not be making any changes to the SSA methodology until 2003–04. We will, however, be consulting soon on options arising from the separate DEFRA-led review of financial and administrative arrangements for flood defence, which may affect SSAs from that date.

Homelessness

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what measures there are to provide accommodation for elderly people who are homeless.

Sally Keeble: Under the homelessness legislation (Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996), local housing authorities must ensure that suitable accommodation becomes available for all applicants who are eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and who fall within a priority need group. The priority need groups include a person who is vulnerable as a result of old age or with whom such a person resides or might reasonably be expected to reside.
	The Housing Corporation, through the approved development programme, currently funds registered social landlords to provide accommodation for elderly people who are homeless. A continued commitment to this client group is recognised in the Housing Corporation's National Investment Strategy for 2003–04.

Planning

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if consultation draft PPG25 will apply planning applications originally submitted before its introduction.

Sally Keeble: The draft of PPG25 ("Development and Flood Risk") was superseded by the final version when it was published in July 2001. All planning policy guidance notes are material considerations, to be taken into account by local authorities where relevant to their decisions on planning applications during the period they are in force.

Low-carbon Transport

David Lepper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will make a statement on the Government's proposed action to deliver a low-carbon transport system.

David Jamieson: I have today, together with the Minister of State Department for Trade and Industry, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury and the Minister of State Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, published a draft Government strategy on "Powering Future Vehicles", for consultation. This draft strategy sets out how Government propose to lead, encourage and facilitate the shift to a low-carbon transport system. This marks the start of a consultation, which will last three months. In the spring the Government will publish a final Powering Future Vehicles strategy. I have placed copies of this document in the Library.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Sport (Rural Areas)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the provision of opportunities for sporting activities in rural areas.

Richard Caborn: The Government are fully committed to providing a wide range of opportunities for sporting activities in all areas of the country, including rural areas. A number of initiatives including School Sports Co-ordinators, Spaces for Sport and the Arts, and the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) PE and School Sport Programme, will help to improve provision in rural areas.

Digital Services (Wales)

Simon Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the regulation of digital services in Wales.

Kim Howells: The Independent Television Commission are responsible for the regulation of all digital television services in Wales except for BBC licence funded services and S4C.

Digital Boxes

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make available digital set top boxes free of charge to (a) pensioners and (b) others on low incomes.

Kim Howells: My Department has no plans to make available digital set top boxes free of charge. However, the Government are committed to ensuring that terrestrial analogue broadcasting signals are maintained until switching to digital is an affordable option for the vast majority of people. As a target indicator of affordability, 95 per cent. of consumers should have access to digital equipment.

Supporters Direct Scheme

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on funding available to sports clubs through the Supporters Direct scheme.

Richard Caborn: Supporters Direct was established to assist groups of supporters wishing to get involved in the responsible running of football clubs. It provides legal and other advice, and limited financial help with administrative costs, to groups wishing to form club-based supporters' trusts.

Swimming Pool (Upminster)

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the plans for a new swimming pool at Central park, Harold Hill, Upminster, sponsored by Sport England.

Richard Caborn: Sport England provided a lottery grant of £4.2 million towards the costs of developing the new swimming facilities in Central park, Harold Hill, Upminster in December 1999 which included a six lane, 25m pool. The total project costs at the time of the award were estimated to be approximately £8.3 million.

Public Libraries

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the standard of public library provision.

Tessa Jowell: The Government have encouraged better planning, accountability and performance in public library services through the introduction of Annual Library Plans (ALPs) in 1998 and standards of service on 1 April this year. The authority's performance against the Library Standards will be monitored, by the Department, through ALPs. Additionally, to help libraries provide a better service, £170 million of lottery money is being made available to libraries through the People's Network programme to upgrade their ICT infrastructure, create innovative digital content and train library staff in the use of ICT.

New Millennium Experience Company

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement about the cost of running the New Millennium Experience Company since 1 January and its future plans.

Tessa Jowell: The New Millennium Experience Company (NMEC) has incurred wind-down costs of £8.81 million in the period 1 January to 31 October 2001. NMEC is engaged in a wide range of tasks necessary to prepare the company for solvent liquidation including closing out and finalising all aspects of the company's financial affairs. It is intended that a liquidator will be appointed around the end of this year.

Eden Centre (Cornwall)

Linda Gilroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the performance of the Eden centre in Cornwall.

Tessa Jowell: This is a matter for the Millennium Commission. I will write to my hon. Friend in my capacity as Chair of the Commission, and place copies of my reply in the Libraries of both Houses.

Gambling

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on gambling legislation.

Kim Howells: We are now considering all the comments which we have received since July on the report of the independent Gambling Review Body. We shall announce our conclusions early next year.

Gambling

Denis Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what (a) evidence and (b) advice the Gambling Review Body considered before including Recommendation 70 in its recent report.

Richard Caborn: Annex B to the report of the Gambling Review Body summarises the information and evidence on which it based its recommendations.

Sports (Yorkshire and the Humber)

Kali Mountford: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her plans to develop grassroots sports in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Richard Caborn: The Government are committed to the development of sport and increasing opportunities for participation throughout the country. The strategy for sport—A Sporting Future for All—and the Government's Plan for Sport set out an action plan on how we intend to achieve those objectives. Responsibility for developing grass roots sport at the regional level rests with a number of organisations including Sport England, local authorities, local education authorities, schools, sports governing bodies, sports clubs, volunteers, and in order to ensure the best use of resources it is essential that all these interests work in partnership.
	In the Yorkshire Region Sport England and the Regional Sports Board are working closely together to produce a new strategic plan for sport in the region.
	All of the programmes for providing better sports facilities and improving sports provision are being implemented in the Region including Lottery funding, where over £130 million has been committed to the region, the School Sport Co-ordinators programme and specialist sports colleges while the Spaces for Sport and Arts, NOF Round three and NOF Green Spaces programmes will all be injecting significant new resources into facilities which will be available to schools and the wider community.
	For the future I have made it clear that I wish to see a strengthened regional structure for the delivery of sport in the regions which involves local decision making and strong partnerships with all the key local interests. I will be discussing these issues with the Sport England Council and its new Chief Executive when he is in post.

Sports Participation (Young People)

Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action she is taking to encourage and assist participation in sports by young people.

Tessa Jowell: The Government have initiated a variety of programmes to encourage and assist participation in sports by young people—notably £120 million over four years to establish a network of 1,000 School Sport Co-ordinators in secondary schools across England and £581 million of lottery money in England, from the New Opportunities Fund 3rd round, to help build and refurbish school sport facilities across England.

Sports Participation (Young People)

Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on how she encourages sport among young people in the community.

Richard Caborn: The Government have set up and are running a number of programmes to encourage sports among young people in the community. The Space for Sports and Arts is a joint initiative between DCMS, DfEE, Sport England, Arts Council of England and the New Opportunities Fund which has allocated £130 million to 65 LEAs to develop new sports and arts facilities on primary school sites. These will be used by young people and will also be available for community use. £581 million New Opportunities Fund money will be invested in strengthening the foundation of sport across England by building and refurbishing PE and sports facilities in schools. These will be made available to the wider community. On 11 January 2001 the Government announced an investment of £7 million over two years to train up to 60,000 young people and adult volunteers for sport. The scheme, 'Leadership and Volunteering in Community Sport,' will foster leadership skills and self- confidence in young people and contribute significantly to their personal development and employability.

Regional Theatres

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action her Department is taking to support regional theatres (a) in the United Kingdom and (b) in London.

Tessa Jowell: Theatre funding is a matter for the Arts Council of England and the Regional Arts Boards. The Arts Council has already announced significant additional funding for theatre in England from 2002–03 which will see the budget for theatre rise from its current level of £45 million to £70 million by the end of the current planning cycle (2003–04). The theatre budget for London will increase from £8,620,514 in 2000–01 to £14,574,655 in 2003–04, or by 69 per cent.

Regional Theatres

Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support her Department is giving to regional theatres in the east midlands.

Richard Caborn: Funding for theatre remains a matter for the Arts Council of England and the Regional Arts Boards. In March this year, the Arts Council announced a significant increase in funding for theatre in 2002–03 and 2003–04, including a 62 per cent. increase for subsidised theatre throughout the east midlands by the end of the period.

Sports Facilities (Havering)

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her support for sports facilities in the London borough of Havering.

Richard Caborn: It is the Government's aim to ensure maximum participation in sport from all members of all communities.
	In order to improve sports facilities in the London borough of Havering, the Lottery Sports Fund has awarded grants totalling over £4.6 million to 11 projects with a total project cost of over £8.9 million.

Tourism (Balance of Trade)

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the balance of trade is on tourism.

Kim Howells: The latest estimate of balance of payments deficit from tourism (seasonally adjusted figures) in the year to September 2001 is £13.7 billion. Earnings and overseas expenditure in the years to September 2000 and 2001 are summarised in the following table.
	
		Balance of expenditure by overseas visitors to the UK and UK residents abroad
		
			   £ billion  
			  12 months ending:  
			  September 2000 September 2001 
		
		
			 Visitors to the UK 12.8 11.8 
			 UK residents 23.8 25.5 
			 Balance (deficit) -11.0 -13.7 
		
	
	Source:
	Derived from International Passenger Survey

BBC (Digital Services)

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her recent decision on the BBC's new digital services.

Tessa Jowell: On 13 September, at the Royal Television Society Convention in Cambridge, I announced my decision on the BBC's proposals for new digital television and radio services.
	I gave approval to the following new services:
	two new television channels for children—one aimed at children aged six to 13, another for the under six-year-olds;
	BBC4—a television service intended to create a forum for debate and aimed at anyone interested in culture, arts and ideas that will replace BBC Knowledge;
	five new digital radio services aimed separately at a young specialist audience (Network X), an Asian audience (Asian Network), and sports lovers (Five Live Sports Plus) as well as an archive music channel (Network Y) and an archive voice channel (Network Z) plus an extension of the BBC World Service to the UK.
	I have set strict conditions for each service covering commitments to high quality, interactivity and the use of home-grown talent and productions. I have also set general conditions including one which requires the BBC to draw up and publish a plan for promoting digital television and radio services by the end of 2001.
	I assessed each of the proposals against the published DCMS guidelines for BBC public service approvals and invited comments from the broadcasting and communications industry, the Independent Television Commission, the Radio Authority and consumer groups. I concluded that each approved service is distinctive and that its likely impact on the market is proportionate to its public value.
	I did not give approval to BBC3, a television service aimed at 16 to 34-year-olds, which was a proposed replacement for BBC Choice. I was not convinced that the proposals were truly distinctive in an already crowded market, and have invited the BBC to put forward fresh proposals.
	I will be reviewing all the new services in 2004 as part of the review of the Charter and-Agreement and licence fee funding.

Football Association

Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions she has had with the Football Association; and what matters were discussed.

Richard Caborn: With my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, I had a meeting with the chairman and chief executive of the Football Association on 25 September. We discussed a range of football issues.

Channel 5

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has for expanding the coverage of Channel 5 to all areas of Great Britain.

Kim Howells: There are no such plans, because the provision of digital terrestrial television now has priority for the use of scarce spectrum. Channel 5 services are carried free-to-view on all digital platforms. The Government's aim is to make the main analogue channels universally available in digital across the UK, at least matching the existing analogue coverage of 99.4 per cent. of the population.

National Lottery

Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what guidance she gives to Camelot on the designation of Lottery outlets;
	(2)  what representations she has received from retailers in each of the last five years with regard to the allocation of lottery outlets; and what appeals procedure exists for retailers who have been rejected as lottery providers.

Richard Caborn: There have been a number of representations from retailers during this period about decisions by Camelot Group plc not to install a terminal on their premises. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has issued no guidance to Camelot on this matter. However, its licence from the National Lottery Commission requires Camelot to provide a terminal for each postcode district within which there are at least 2,000 residents, and to make available for public inspection its criteria for selecting and de-selecting retailers. It is for Camelot to exercise its commercial judgment in applying these criteria, and there is no separate appeals procedure.

Film Industry

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will list the films which were made in the UK; and how many shot footage in the Teesside region in the last five years.

Richard Caborn: The British Film Institute's Film and Television Handbook lists the films produced in the UK in a number of different categories, some of which were only partly shot in the UK. The lists have been copied for the last five years and I am arranging for copies to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
	The Northern Screen Commission advises that the following films contain footage filmed in the Teesside region:
	Elizabeth: 1997
	Shopping: 1997
	Like Father: 1998
	Billy Elliott: 1999.
	Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone: 2000

Departmental Expenditure Limit

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will estimate the total unallocated funds within her departmental expenditure limit (a) at the start of the financial year and (b) to date; and what was the month seven forecast on outturn underspend against her departmental expenditure limit in (i) real and (ii) percentage terms.

Richard Caborn: The Department's Unallocated Provision (DUP) for the present financial year is set out in the detailed allocations table on page 223 of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport Annual Report for 2000–01 (Cm 5114). There has been no draw-down of the Department's DUP to date. Outturn against the six month forecast for each Request for Resources will be published in the Winter Supplementary Estimates Summary Request for Supply as usual.

Derek Casey

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how the amount paid to Sport England's former chief executive, Derek Casey, upon the termination of his contract, was determined; what the amount was; what conditions were placed upon the payment; what form the payment took; for what reasons the amount was not disclosed earlier; what part (a) her Department and (b) Sport England played in arriving at the amount and nature of the payment; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: Full details of the severance package for the former Chief Executive of Sport England and of the process by which it was agreed will be included in the Sport England accounts which will be laid before the House as soon as possible.

Sports Action Zone (West Cumbria)

Jack Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what projects the Sports Action Zone in West Cumbria has initiated in (a) Allerdale, (b) Barrow and (c) Copeland; what sum of money is involved in each case in each borough; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 30 November 2001
	Details of projects initiated by the West Cumbria Sports Action Zone are as follows:
	
		£ 
		
			  Local authority  Project Sport England funding  Other agencies funding   Total 
		
		
			 Barrow School holiday provision 4,000 — 4,000 
			 Barrow Disability sports development worker 93,215 — 93,215 
			 Barrow Active living for all men's worker 49,386 52,500 101,886 
			 Barrow Active living for all women's worker 13,489 67,500 80,989 
			 Barrow Active living all for older people's worker 35,986 45,000 80,986 
			 Total  196,076 165,000 361,076 
			  
			 Copeland Health communities worker 7,500 77,629 85,129  
			 Total  7,500 77,629 85,129 
			  
			 Allerdale/Copeland Sport for health manager 30,000 40,000 70,000 
			 Total  30,000 40,000 70,000 
			  
			 Overall total  233,576 282,629 516,205

Sports Action Zone (West Cumbria)

Jack Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the Needs Assessment and Action Plan for the West Cumbria Sports Action Zone will be published; and if she will make a statement.

Richard Caborn: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The Needs Assessment and Action Plan for the West Cumbria Sports Action Zone will be published in mid-December.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of letters received by her Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days;
	(2)  how many letters her Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Richard Caborn: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by Departments and agencies and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001 Ministers received 1,091 letters—298 of which were from hon. and right hon. Members. 78 per cent. of the replies to these were issued within the Department's target of 18 working days. It is not possible to break this down any further without incurring disproportionate costs.

Sport Skills

Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on her proposals to enable talented, young sports students to develop their skills.

Richard Caborn: My Department's financial assistance to support and develop talented young athletes is channelled through two lottery funded initiatives administered by Sport England—the World Class Potential Programme and the World Class Start Programme.
	My officials and I are also discussing with the private sector the potential for commercial sponsorship to assist with talent development.

Sports Projects

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what major sports projects in 2002 her Department is promoting in London.

Richard Caborn: Next year, the country joins Her Majesty the Queen in celebrating her Golden Jubilee. As part of these celebrations in the London region, there is a nine day festival of sport planned from 6 July to 14 July.
	This will involve on the weekends of 6 and 7 July and 13 and 14 July, the London Heathrow Youth Games preliminaries and finals. The London Youth Games began in the Queen's Silver Jubilee Year and will therefore be in its 25 year in 2002.
	On 11 July there will be the Mini Youth Games for primary aged children.
	Both events involve 32 London boroughs and the Corporation of London.
	On 8, 9 and possibly 10 July there will be the Active Sports Talent Camps which are specifically linked to the Manchester Commonwealth Games under the Spirit of Friendship' banner. This will incorporate training and coaching clinics for those young people who show potential for 1 of 9 sports. The sports involved are: athletics, basketball, girl's football, hockey, netball, rugby league, rugby union (boys and girls), swimming and tennis.

School Sports

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to apply the money for the new opportunities fund investment in school sports.

Richard Caborn: Plans for the new opportunities for PE and Sport in Schools programme are set out in the new opportunities fund's recently published document "Building for Tomorrow"—copies of which I am placing in the Libraries of both Houses. The programme will provide PE and sports facilities for young people and the community in general and is intended to have a long-term impact on key issues facing local communities such as education, health, crime and drugs use.

Royal Palaces

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her answer of 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 634W, on royal palaces, which persons residing in royal palaces have council tax charged against that accommodation they occupy; and if this tax is paid by (a) the royal household and (b) the occupant.

Richard Caborn: Council tax is paid by all of the 244 residents residing in royal palaces listed in my hon. Friend's answer of 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 634W. The grant in aid for property services is only responsible for council tax on vacant properties.

Royal Palaces

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her answer of 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 634W, on royal palaces, which members of the royal family occupy accommodation in the royal palaces other than Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

Richard Caborn: The other members of the royal family who occupy self-contained residential accommodation in the royal palaces are:
	The Prince of Wales
	The Princess Royal
	The Princess Margaret
	The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester
	The Duke and Duchess of Kent
	Princess Alexandra
	Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

Royal Palaces

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her answer of 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 634W, on royal palaces, which persons residing in royal palaces occupy accommodation that is separate hereditaments for council tax purposes.

Richard Caborn: The 244 residents with self-contained residential accommodation in royal palaces are liable to pay separate council tax.

Royal Palaces

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to her answer of 13 November 2001, Official Report, column 634W, on royal palaces, if she will list the commercial occupants of the royal palaces.

Richard Caborn: The commercial lettings outside the security cordon are mainly arranged by estate agents. These properties are marketed in the same way as other properties included in the letting portfolios of these agents. It would be inappropriate to list the individuals concerned. None of them has any connection with the Royal Household or the Royal Family.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Brazilian Mahogany

Bob Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to support the Brazilian Government's moratorium on trade in mahogany.

Nigel Griffiths: Brazilian mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) is listed in appendix III of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Its import into the United Kingdom is covered by annex C of EU regulation 338/97 and must be accompanied by an export permit or certificate of origin issued by the Brazilian Government's CITES management authority.

Omega, Warrington

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps she is taking to assist the development of the Omega site in Warrington; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The Omega site in Warrington is identified in the NWDA regional strategy as one of the 11 strategic sites for investment in the North-west.
	English Partnerships and Warrington borough council are taking forward the development of this site. The North-West development agency has contributed £25,000 towards the Omega partnership, which was formed to co-ordinate and oversee all aspects of the project.

Economic Development (Lancashire)

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of (a) the number of jobs created, (b) the number of jobs created to be taken up by residents of communities in need and (c) the estimated cost per job created as part of the (i) Luneside East, (ii) Lancaster West Business Park, (iii) Heysham Business Park, (iv) Kingsway, (v) Mellishaw North and (vi) Luneside West developments included in the bid for an economic development zone by Lancaster City Council.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 26 November 2001
	Lancaster's bid for economic development zone status is currently being assessed, along with those of other EDZ contenders, by independent consultants appointed by the Government office for the north-west.

Economic Development (Lancashire)

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from the North-West development agency in relation to the bid put forward by Lancaster city council for an economic development zone.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 26 November 2001
	None.

Lune Industrial Estate

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from the North-West development agency on access to the Lune industrial estate.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 26 November 2001
	No representations have been received from the North- West development agency on access on the Lune industrial estate.

Postal Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with Consignia on the proposal to charge customers for post and delivery before 9.30 am.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The Department has regular discussions with Consignia about a range of strategic issues facing the company. However, ideas about altering charging or delivery arrangements are operational issues for the company provided that it remains within the terms of the licence issued to it by the Postal Services Commission.

Postal Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the proposed abolition of the second postal delivery.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 26 November 2001
	Consignia's proposals in relation to second delivery are operational issues for the company provided that it remains within the terms of the licence issued to it by the Postal Services Commission.

Postal Services

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with the management of Consignia on charging for the second postal delivery.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The Department has regular discussions with Consignia about a range of strategic issues facing the company. Consignia's proposals in relation to the second postal delivery are operational issues for the company provided that it remains within the terms of the licence issued to it by the Postal Services Commission.

Postal Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions she has had with Consignia; and if she raised the issue of industrial relations.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The Department has regular discussions with Consignia about a range of strategic issues facing the company. The handling of industrial relations and the resolution of any disputes are issues for the management of the company and the unions. The Government have encouraged the management and unions to work in partnership to implement the recommendations in the Sawyer report published in July 2001. Progress has been encouraging but a lot more still needs to be done.

Postal Services

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the Government's policy on the ending of the second post, with special reference to rural areas.

Douglas Alexander: holding answer 30 November 2001
	Consignia's proposals in relation to the second delivery are operational issues for the company, subject to the regulatory powers and duties of the Postal Services Commission in respect of service standards.

Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many formal notices her Department has received in the last year from the parliamentary ombudsman expressing an intention to carry out an investigation; and in respect of each notice how long it took to respond.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 27 November 2001
	The Department has received two formal inquiries from the ombudsman in the last year (ie from 23 November 2000). In the first case, a full response was sent 26 days from the date of the inquiry, and in the second case 35 days from the date of the inquiry.

Employment Tribunals

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many applications to employment tribunals were (a) upheld, (b) dismissed and (c) withdrawn in the last year for which information is available.

Alan Johnson: The following is the information.
	
		Outcome of employment tribunal cases disposed of in 2000–01
		
			  Number of cases 
		
		
			 ACAS conciliated settlements 33,169 
			 Withdrawn 27,502 
			 Successful at hearing 13,640 
			 Dismissed at hearing (out of scope) 1,884 
			 Dismissed at hearing (other) 9,582 
			 Disposed of otherwise 7,161 
			  
			 Total 92,938 
		
	
	Source:
	Employment Tribunals Service
	A claim may be brought under more than one jurisdiction or subsequently amended/clarified in the course of proceedings, but will only be counted once in the above table (against the main jurisdiction).

Transatlantic Radio Signal (Centenary)

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with her counterparts in Canada and the US in respect of arrangements to celebrate the centenary of the successful transmission of a transatlantic radio signal.

Douglas Alexander: My officials in the Department and the Radiocommunications Agency have had extensive discussions with Canadian Government officials about arrangements for the celebration of the centenary. At the end of September, a senior official represented the agency and contributed to the Wireless Vision Congress at St. John's Newfoundland which was part of the Canadian celebrations of the centenary. There have been no discussions with the US Government on this issue.

Transatlantic Radio Signal (Centenary)

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what arrangements her Department has made to support the celebration of the centenary of the first transatlantic radio signal.

Douglas Alexander: I am due to host a reception at the Radiocommunications Agency on 12 December to mark this important achievement. There will be a link-up from the reception to agency officials who will be in Poldhu, where the agency has donated radio equipment to the Poldhu amateur radio club to commemorate the centenary. The agency has also produced a souvenir booklet, "Wireless over the Waves", which has achieved a wide circulation and is on its website.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what criteria were used to select the Recruitment and Employment Confederation as the main negotiator for the UK employment industry.

Alan Johnson: I have met the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, which is the main representative body in the private recruitment industry, to discuss the draft conduct of employment agencies and employment businesses regulations and other issues relating to the private recruitment industry. My officials and I have also discussed these matters with a number of other representative bodies in the industry and individual recruitment companies.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the average cost is for an information technology staffing agency to provide an IT professional to a client.

Alan Johnson: I have no estimate of the average cost to an information technology recruitment agency of providing an IT professional.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of temporary information technology staff operate through personal service companies.

Alan Johnson: I have no estimate of the percentage of information technology temporary staff who operate through personal service companies.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what evidence she has received that demonstrates that the quarantine period proposed in the draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001 has been set at an appropriate timescale for recruitment of information technology personnel.

Alan Johnson: The principles underlying our proposals on the quarantine periods to apply to the payment of transfer fees are in line with suggestions made by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, the private recruitment industry's principal trade association.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she has completed a regulatory impact assessment on the proposed draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: A regulatory impact assessment on the proposed new Employment Agency regulations has been produced and published on my Department's website.
	Our objective in overhauling the existing regulations, which date from 1976, is simpler, clearer regulations, which are relevant to the market of today and of the future. The proposed new regulations are in many cases updated versions of existing requirements. They are designed to benefit recruitment agencies, those employed through them and hirers. They will remove unnecessary restrictions on agencies operations and the services they offer, while protecting the interests of work seekers and vulnerable groups.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she is planning to undertake further consultation on the draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001.

Alan Johnson: I will be consulting further on the main changes we propose to the draft conduct regulations.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  how many IT agencies operate in the UK; and what percentage of these have a turnover in excess of £2 million per annum;
	(2)  what information she has collated on the number of IT staffing agencies which are privately owned and managed small and medium-sized enterprises and if she will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: I do not have full details on the information requested, but the Association of Technology Staffing Companies, the body representing the IT staffing companies, estimates that there are some 2,000 companies in the sector with a total annual turnover of almost £2 billion.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions she has had with (a) representative organisations and (b) individual companies in the recruitment industry.

Alan Johnson: In recent months I have met a number of representative bodies and individual companies from the private recruitment industry to discuss the draft conduct of employment agencies and employment businesses regulations and other issues.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  if she will list the (a) companies, (b) organisations and (c) individuals who have been invited to discuss the proposed draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001;
	(2)  if she will publish the names of the (a) individuals and (b) organisations who have commented on the proposed draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001.

Alan Johnson: A list of the respondents to the last consultation exercise on the proposed draft conduct of employment agencies and employment businesses regulations has been placed in the Libraries of the House. I have also held discussions with a number of these.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she has received representations from the IT industry about the proposed draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: I received representations on the draft conduct of employment agencies and employment businesses regulations from the representative bodies, individual recruitment companies and workers within the IT industry.
	Our draft conduct regulations are designed to benefit recruitment agencies, employment businesses, their clients and those seeking employment through them. They will remove unnecessary restrictions on organisations in the recruitment industry, including the IT sector, and the services they can offer, while protecting the interests of work seekers and vulnerable groups. I recognise that the IT sector plays an increasingly important role in the recruitment industry.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 
	(1)  what specific concerns prompted the review of the Employment Agencies Act 1973;
	(2)  if she will she make a statement on the aspects of the Employment Agencies Act 1973 which triggered a revision of the present legislation.

Alan Johnson: I have no plans to review the Employment Agencies Act 1973 at the present time. The Government consider that the existing Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 1976 do not meet the Better Regulation Taskforce's five central principles of good regulation: transparency, accountability, targeting, consistency and proportionality. Our objective in overhauling the existing legislative framework governing agency conduct, which dates from 1976, is simpler, clearer, regulations, which are relevant to the labour market of today and of the future.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what studies have been conducted into the number of temporary employees who have taken up permanent employment in the (a) nursing, (b) secretarial, (c) information technology and (d) transport industries in the last 12 months.

Alan Johnson: The Recruitment and Employment Confederation estimates that about one fifth of temporary workers transfer to permanent employment each year. However, I have no breakdown by specific sectors.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she last met the Association of Technology Staffing Companies; and if she will make a statement.

Alan Johnson: Although I have met a number of bodies representing the various sectors within the private recruitment industry over recent years, I have not yet had the opportunity to meet representatives of the Association of Technology Staffing Companies (ATSCo). However, my officials have had a number of productive meetings with the ATSCo over the past year.

Recruitment Industry

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry by what date she expects to lay the draft of the conduct of employment agencies and employment business regulations 2001.

Alan Johnson: I expect to lay the draft conduct regulations before Parliament early in the new year.

Galileo Project

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if the next stage of funding for the Galileo project was discussed at the November European Space Agency ministerial meeting; what commitments were made by each member state; and if she will make a statement.

Patricia Hewitt: holding answer 29 November 2001
	Yes. A declaration for subscription to the next phase of the Galileo programme was opened at the Ministerial Council. A majority of ESA member states subscribed. The UK indicated that it would want to await the outcome of the EU Transport Council before finalising its position.
	My Department is working closely with the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions and others within Whitehall to examine the economic case for providing further funding to the Galileo project, if it goes ahead.

Age Discrimination

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will consult on (a) employment and (b) goods and services in age discrimination legislation.

Alan Johnson: The forthcoming consultation on age discrimination legislation will focus on employment and vocational training. This is our priority, and will implement the EU employment directive. Those responding to the consultation are free, of course, to raise related matters, including the question of extending provision to goods and services.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many letters her Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Patricia Hewitt: My Department received 936 letters from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Railtrack

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her policy is on the proposed takeover of Railtrack by WestLB.

David Jamieson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government welcome the interest shown in the role of the network operator by third parties. However, ultimately it is for the administrator to formulate a proposal for a transfer scheme and put it to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for approval.

TREASURY

Pre-Budget Report

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish disaggregated figures for the (a) Customs and Excise duties and (b) other taxes and royalties shown on lines 8 and 10 of table B8, page 174, of the pre-Budget report 2001.

Andrew Smith: More detailed figures for tax receipts in 2000–01 and 2001–02 are shown in table C7, page 192, of the Budget 2001 and in table B11, page 184, of the 2001 pre-Budget report.

Financial Services Authority

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason the FSA took two months to issue a public statement after being informed on 24 September of a previously undisclosed letter dated 1 April 1999 from Mr. Christopher Headdon, then Actuary to Equitable Life, to Irish European Reinsurance Company.

Ruth Kelly: I understand that the FSA disclosed the existence of the letter at the earliest point that it was appropriate to do so. The letter was relevant to commercial negotiations which have only just been concluded and the FSA press statement of 26 November reported the outcome of those discussions as soon as practicable following the conclusion of the negotiations.

Financial Services Authority

Russell Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has received a copy of the report requested in the letter of 16 October from the Economic Secretary to Sir Howard Davies; and if he will publish it.

Ruth Kelly: The FSA sent the report to the Treasury on 20 November 2001. I have today forwarded the report to Lord Penrose as further input to his Inquiry. I have also asked the FSA to make the report publicly available. Copies of my letter to Lord Penrose and the report itself have been deposited in the Library of the House.

London Underground

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what involvement officials from HM Treasury have had in the value for money assessment of the public-private partnership for the London Underground; if he will place in the Library the assessment he has received from the Office for National Statistics concerning the accounting treatment for the PPP for the London Underground; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Smith: The value for money assessment of the London Underground PPP will be carried out by London Transport in line with the relevant guidance produced by HM Treasury and the Treasury Taskforce. London Transport is also working to ensure that when it evaluates final PPP bids it addresses the issues raised by the National Audit Office in its report 'The financial analysis for the London Underground Public Private Partnerships'.
	The Office for National Statistics has made no assessment of the accounting treatment of the PPP.

Treasury Investment Appraisal Guidance

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what changes he plans to make to Treasury investment appraisal guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Smith: A review of the Capital Appraisal process, including the detailed guidance issued by the Treasury on investment appraisal, was announced at the time of the pre-Budget report last year. When the review concludes I will decide whether any changes need to be made to the current guidance.

Cross-border Bank Transfers

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the average charge for a cross-border bank transfer of 100 euros (a) in the Euro zone and (b) involving a UK bank; and if he will make a statement.

Ruth Kelly: The Treasury has made no assessment of charges for cross-border credit transfers either (a) in the Euro zone, or (b) involving a UK bank.

Capital Assets

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 270W, on capital assets, 
	(1)  if he will place in the Library the classification of each asset reverting to the public sector for PPP contracts signed in the last 12 months; and what was their aggregate value;
	(2)  what proportion of PPP contracts by value in 2000–01 were classified as (a) finance leases and (b) operating leases; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  if he will place in the Library the aggregate value of capital assets expected to revert to public sector ownership in each of the next 25 years; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Smith: This information is not held centrally. Information on the assets held by each department and major PPP projects is available in departmental resource account.

Regional Investment

Adam Price: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the expenditure was (a) under the single regeneration budget, and its equivalents, (b) under the housing capital programmes outside the SRB, (c) under the European regional development fund and the European social fund, (d) by specialised economic regeneration agencies, (e) by TECs, skills and learning councils and on education and training by the Employment Service and the further education funding councils, (f) by the DTI on regional policies including regional selective assistance, (g) by the enterprise boards and (h) under specialist regeneration activities including employment zones and new deal in communities in each of the last 10 years for each of the nations of Great Britain.

Andrew Smith: Spending in devolved areas is a matter for the devolved Administrations to determine within their overall departmental expenditure limits, announced following Spending Review 2000. Information on receipts from European Community institutions analysed by fund and by Department is published in table 14d of the departmental report of the Chancellor's Departments (Cm 5116). Information on the programmes of UK Government Departments is published in the relevant Department's departmental report.

Regional Investment

Adam Price: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to allow regional development agencies to issue regional bonds as a regional investment facility.

Andrew Smith: There are no such plans. However, Regional Venture Capital Funds will shortly be up and running across the country. These will provide at least £270 million of investment in the regions and are supported by up to £80 million of Government resources.

Asian Community Events

Keith Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many Asian community events he has attended within the last 12 months.

Ruth Kelly: Over the last 12 months, Treasury Ministers have attended numerous meetings at which members of the Asian business, faith and other communities have been present, including the Bradford Mela (Peel Park, Bradford, 1 July 2001), Diwali celebrations in Southend-on-Sea (5 November 2001) and 16th Anniversary Asian Traders Dinner (London, 13 November 2001).

Residents (Tyne and Wear)

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the numbers of residents of each authority in Tyne and Wear in each year since 1991 (a) in total and (b) the percentage in the age ranges (i) 0 to 4, (ii) 4 to 14 and (iii) 14 to 24 years.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 30 November 2001
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question concerning the number of residents in each local authority in Tyne and Wear in each year since 1991. I am replying in his absence. (19491).
	The information for the total number of residents and the percentage in the age ranges 0–4, 5–14 and 15–24 in the local authorities in Tyne and Wear is in the attached table.
	
		Estimated resident population mid-1991 to mid-2000 for districts within Tyne and Wear metropolitan county
		
			 Year/district Total persons (thousands) Percentage of persons aged 0–45–1415–24 
		
		
			 1991 
			 Gateshead 203.1 6.2 11.8 13.8 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 278.2 6.4 11.3 17.0 
			 North Tyneside 195.5 6.2 12.3 12.6 
			 South Tyneside 157.2 6.7 12.6 12.7 
			 Sunderland 296.4 7.0 13.4 14.7 
			  
			 1992 
			 Gateshead 203.1 6.3 12.0 13.2 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 281.7 6.4 11.6 16.4 
			 North Tyneside 195.2 6.2 12.4 12.2 
			 South Tyneside 157.3 6.6 13.0 12.3 
			 Sunderland 297.1 7.0 13.6 14.2 
			 1993 
			 Gateshead 202.9 6.3 12.2 12.8 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 285.3 6.4 11.9 15.8 
			 North Tyneside 194.8 6.2 12.6 12.0 
			 South Tyneside 157.2 6.5 13.3 11.9 
			 Sunderland 297.8 6.9 13.8 13.7 
			  
			 1994 
			 Gateshead 202.4 6.2 12.2 12.4 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 283.6 6.4 12.0 16.2 
			 North Tyneside 194.1 6.1 12.6 11.6 
			 South Tyneside 156.7 6.5 13.4 11.5 
			 Sunderland 297.2 6.7 13.8 13.7 
			  
			 1995 
			 Gateshead 201.8 6.1 12.2 12.0 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 283.1 6.4 12.2 16.5 
			 North Tyneside 193.9 6.0 12.5 11.4 
			 South Tyneside 156.3 6.3 13.5 11.3 
			 Sunderland 295.8 6.6 13.8 13.7 
			  
			 1996 
			 Gateshead 201.0 6.0 12.3 11.4 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 282.3 6.1 12.4 16.7 
			 North Tyneside 193.6 5.9 12.4 11.1 
			 South Tyneside 156.1 6.1 13.6 10.9 
			 Sunderland 294.3 6.3 13.8 13.6 
			  
			 1997 
			 Gateshead 200.2 5.9 12.4 10.9 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 279.5 6.0 12.6 17.0 
			 North Tyneside 193.3 5.7 12.4 10.7 
			 South Tyneside 155.4 6.0 13.7 10.6 
			 Sunderland 293.0 6.1 13.9 13.6 
			  
			 1998
			 Gateshead 198.9 5.8 12.4 10.6 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 276.1 5.8 12.7 17.2 
			 North Tyneside 194.0 5.7 12.4 10.4 
			 South Tyneside 154.6 5.8 13.8 10.3 
			 Sunderland 292.3 5.9 13.8 13.7 
			  
			 1999 
			 Gateshead 198.1 5.7 12.3 10.4 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 273.0 5.6 12.5 18.4 
			 North Tyneside 193.2 5.6 12.3 10.1 
			 South Tyneside 153.5 5.6 13.7 10.6 
			 Sunderland 290.7 5.7 13.8 14.1 
			  
			 2000 
			 Gateshead 196.9 5.5 12.3 10.5 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 270.5 5.3 12.4 18.6 
			 North Tyneside 194.1 5.6 12.1 10.2 
			 South Tyneside 152.7 5.5 13.5 10.9 
			 Sunderland 289.5 5.6 13.6 14.1 
		
	
	Source:
	Office for National Statistics

Teenage Pregnancy

Richard Burden: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many girls resident in Birmingham, Northfield registered (a) the conception and (b) the birth of a child before the age of 16 years in each year since 1997.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Richard Burden, dated 30 November 2001
	As National Statistician I am replying to your recent question on the number of girls resident in Birmingham, Northfield that registered the conception and birth of a child before the age of 16 years, in each year since 1997 (19389).
	There is no requirement to register conceptions in England and Wales. Estimates are however produced by the Office for National Statistics, based on registrations of births and notifications of abortions performed under the Abortion Act (1967). The available figures for estimated conceptions and registered livebirths under 16 for residents of Northfield Parliamentary Constituency since 1997 are given in the table:
	
		Number of conceptions and livebirths under age 16. Residents of Birmingham Northfield Parliamentary Constituency. 1997–2000
		
			  Conceptions under 16 Livebirths under 16 
		
		
			 1997 19 4 
			 1998 29 1 
			 1999 21 5 
			 2000 (15)— 6 
		
	
	(15) Figures not yet available
	Source:
	Office for National Statistics

House Sales

David Wright: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average cost of charges to (a) sell and (b) buy a house has been in each of the last five years broken down by region.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from Len Cook to Mr. David Wright, dated 30 November 2001
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question on the average cost of charges when buying and selling a house in each of the last five years broken down by region (18911).
	Available estimates are of average weekly expenditure on fees for moving house and are shown in the attached table. They are from the Family Expenditure Survey and are for the United Kingdom. Two figures are shown for each year, the first averaged over all households and the second averaged just over the households who had any expenditure on moving house fees.
	Like all estimates from sample surveys these figures are subject to sampling variability. This is particularly high for an item such as moving house fees because the sample of households who incur such expenditure is small and the amounts they spend cover a wide range. For this reason it is not possible to give reliable breakdowns by region or for buying and selling separately.
	
		Household expenditure on professional fees for buying and selling a house -- United Kingdom 1995–96 to 1999–2000£ per year
		
			  Expenditure on professional fees for moving house  
			  Financial year  Averaged over all households Averaged over households with any expend 
		
		
			  Average annual household expenditure 
			 1995–96 48 1,250 
			 1996–97 60 1,230 
			 1997–98 73 1,260 
			 1998–99 59 1,220 
			 1999–2000 75 1,300 
		
	
	Source:
	ONS, Family Expenditure Surveys 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99 and 1999–2000.
	Crown copyright 2001.

Census

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects all 2001 Census forms to be (a) processed and (b) analysed.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, dated 30 November 2001
	The National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales has been asked to reply to your recent question on when all 2001 Census forms are expected to be (a) processed and (b) analysed. I am replying in his absence (19879).
	The processing of the 2001 Census is being carried out in two main phases. Our main contractors Lockheed Martin are scheduled to capture, code and deliver data on an area-by-area basis over the period September 2001 to April 2002.
	On delivery to ONS, the data for each area is then subject to a complex set of 'downstream' computing and manual activities, which ultimately create a full and final database of Census records from which all national and local area Census outputs can be generated, and which is expected to be completed by the end of June 2002.
	The 2001 mid-year national and local authority population estimates based on the final Census area counts are scheduled to be published in August 2002, and the first key analyses from the census itself to be released by the end of December 2002. Further, more detailed, analyses will continue throughout 2003.

Export Credit Guarantees Department

Jackie Lawrence: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will proceed with the second stage of the independent review of the implementation of the recommendations made by KPMG in December 1999 on the adequacy of the (a) risk management system and (b) processes of the Export Credit Guarantees Department.

Paul Boateng: My predecessor announced to the House on 30 November 2000 that KPMG would carry out a post- implementation review of ECGD's progress in addressing the recommendations made by KPMG in December 1999. The first stage of that review was completed last January, and was reported to the House on 31 January. I am pleased to announce that the second stage has now commenced. The review is expected to take between four and six weeks, and I will place a copy of KPMG's report in the Library of the House.

Public Service Pensions

Barbara Follett: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to increase public service pensions from April 2002.

Andrew Smith: Legislation governing public service pensions requires public service pensions to be increased annually by the same percentage as state earnings-related pensions (additional pensions). My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced on 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 894W that benefits such as additional pensions will be increased by 1.7 per cent., in line with the annual increase in the Retail Prices Index up to September 2001. Public service pensions will therefore be increased by 1.7 per cent. from 8 April 2002, except those which have been in payment for less than a year, which will receive a pro-rata increase.

Tax Credits

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which tax credits he defines as public expenditure.

Andrew Smith: The Treasury's calculation of net taxes and social security contributions treats all tax credits as reductions in tax collected since the working families and business tax credits appear as reductions in their tax bills.
	The Treasury's calculation of public sector receipts, drawn from ONS's national accounts treats some tax credits as public expenditure—mostly WFTC and DPTC.

Council Tax Payers

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many council tax payers there were in each year since 1997; and what his estimate is of this figure for the 2001–02 financial year.

Alan Whitehead: I have been asked to reply.
	We do not collect information on the number of council tax payers in England. Figures for the number of properties in England subject to a council tax charge for each financial year from 1996–97 are given in the table.
	
		Total number of dwellings subject to a council tax charge from November 1995
		
			 Number of chargeable dwellings as at: In respect of financial year: Total Percentage increase over previous year 
		
		
			 1 November 1995 1996–97 19,755,865 — 
			 1 November 1996 1997–98 19,933,603 0.9 
			 3 November 1997 1998–99 20,055,311 0.6 
			 3 November 1998 1999–2000 20,233,435 0.9 
			 3 November 1999 2000–01 20,374,128 0.7 
			 1 November 2000 2001–02 20,585,744 1.0 
			 1 November 2001(16) 2002–03 20,717,285 0.6 
		
	
	(16) Estimate

Mortality Ratios

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list the standard mortality ratios for each (a) parliamentary constituency in Scotland and the north-eastern Government office region of England and (b) electoral ward in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne for all causes, for (i) respiratory disease, (ii) coronary disease, (iii) stroke and (iv) cancer.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 30 November 2001
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking for the standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) for (a) each parliamentary constituency in Scotland and the North Eastern Government Office Region of England and (b) each electoral ward in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, for all causes, and for (i) respiratory disease, (ii) coronary disease, (iii) stroke and (iv) cancer. I am replying in his absence (19487)
	Figures for Scotland are the responsibility of the Scottish Executive.
	SMRs for electoral wards and parliamentary constituencies can be calculated only on the basis of ward populations from the 1991 Census. This pre-dates the creation of Government Office Regions. Hence the available data on parliamentary constituencies does not match Government Office Regions.
	The attached table shows SMRs for all causes of death, and for (i) respiratory disease, (ii) coronary disease, (iii) stroke and (iv) cancer for each ward (as constituted at the time of the 1991 Census) in Newcastle upon Tyne District Metropolitan County District, in the years 1991–1993, based on populations from the 1991 Census.
	
		Standardised mortality ratios(17) for selected causes, for wards in Newcastle upon Tyne metropolitan county district Years of registration of death 1991–93
		
			   All Causes  Respiratory disease(18)  Coronary heart disease(18) Stroke(18) Cancers(18)  
			 Ward Males Females Males Females Males Females Males Females Males Females 
		
		
			 Benwell 141.5 148.6 183.9 182.3 137.6 147.9 160.8 171.6 139.9 122.1 
			 Blacklaw 124.4 126.2 84.7 104.2 128.4 128.0 182.5 86.3 164.0 109.4 
			 Byker 129.5 123.5 136.9 113.7 120.1 105.8 146.9 95.5 158.2 149.3 
			 Castle 83.2 99.3 101.1 68.8 66.8 78.4 52.9 121.0 104.5 118.9 
			 Dene 90.0 76.3 50.4 51.7 114.7 89.9 74.0 49.4 94.4 92.4 
			 Denton 109.4 109.4 101.8 93.4 128.1 121.4 159.2 81.5 119.2 118.2 
			 Elswick 173.2 122.3 209.4 125.4 126.7 111.9 156.6 105.6 183.3 138.8 
			 Fawdon 109.5 93.9 99.6 80.6 119.3 130.1 86.6 67.6 125.8 95.7 
			 Fenham 100.9 98.0 124.1 61.0 105.3 89.3 96.7 81.7 126.8 117.7 
			 Grange 130.3 116.3 119.8 114.7 96.3 102.8 147.6 116.1 148.4 116.7 
			 Heaton 99.1 96.6 85.2 86.3 105.9 97.4 58.8 95.8 114.0 118.1 
			 Jesmond 132.9 104.0 112.8 92.2 96.1 139.4 130.5 109.4 101.8 98.4 
			 Kenton 122.5 109.3 109.0 117.9 88.6 139.7 122.7 143.4 116.0 114.0 
			 Lemington 131.5 124.5 125.0 55.0 109.8 93.6 153.0 211.18 100.8 115.0 
			 Monkchester 161.6 139.1 144.5 197.3 163.0 166.8 123.0 122.1 162.1 172.2 
			 Moorside 124.2 97.0 66.3 85.3 133.6 88.7 115.4 112.8 129.3 101.5 
			 Newburn 129.7 103.4 104.0 128.5 139.5 116.9 114.0 64.5 128.3 131.5 
			 Sandyford 120.0 106.7 81.7 85.9 102.6 118.0 160.2 114.5 103.6 144.7 
			 Scotswood 128.2 97.4 90.8 144.0 107.4 110.6 104.2 65.8 155.2 95.4 
			 South Gosforth 106.0 104.2 57.9 87.0 111.6 102.3 99.0 113.3 95.0 117.9 
			 Walker 151.4 130.7 189.1 126.9 122.8 138.0 133.4 106.4 184.2 131.2 
			 Walkergate 145.8 117.6 144.3 133.7 148.5 114.8 142.5 131.5 141.5 118.2 
			 West City 171.4 151.4 190.6 151.0 165.4 126.5 178.6 140.7 185.8 130.6 
			 Westerhope 94.4 98.1 71.6 70.5 93.1 109.6 153.3 96.9 101.0 120.3 
			 Wingrove 117.6 107.5 119.0 94.6 124.7 104.9 106.5 81.7 106.4 132.9 
			 Woolsington 109.7 99.3 71.0 41.5 136.6 122.3 39.0 114.6 126.2 87.4 
		
	
	(17) Standardised to the population of England and Wales
	(18) International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision codes:
	Respiratory disease—460–519
	Coronary heart disease—410–414
	Stroke—430–438
	Cancer—140–208

Economic Activity and Employment Rates

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate (a) the economy activity rate and (b) the employment rate of those aged over 21 years and up to pensionable age in each region and nation of the UK for each year since 1996, broken down by age and sex.

Ruth Kelly: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
	Letter from John Pullinger to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 30 November 2001
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question on economic activity and employment rates. I am replying in his absence (19488).
	The Labour Force Survey (LFS) provides estimates of economic activity and employment rates for people aged 16 and over. The economic activity rate is the number of people who are economically active as a percentage of the relevant population. The employment rate is the number of people in employment as a percentage of the relevant economically active population. The latest available LFS estimates are for summer (June to August) 2001.
	These estimates are available through the House of Commons Library.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many letters his Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Paul Boateng: 663 letters were received.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Paul Boateng: A sample of the 663 letters received in the period concerned indicates that 69 per cent. were answered within 15 days, 87 per cent. within 20 days, 96 per cent. within 30 days and 98 per cent. within 40 days.

Landfill

John Mann: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effects the proposed changes in the landfill tax credit scheme will have on parish council-led regeneration projects.

Paul Boateng: There are at present no proposals to change the scheme. The Government are attracted to replacing all or part of the scheme with a public spending programme to direct resources towards Government priorities on sustainable waste management. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is aiming to issue a consultation paper by the end of this year.

Smuggling

Gisela Stuart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what further steps are being taken to reduce the levels of illegal imports of (a) beer and (b) alcohol.

Paul Boateng: As part of the pre-Budget Report the Government announced on 27 November that Customs activity this year to tackle cross-channel passenger smuggling of alcohol and tobacco has had a profound impact. Revenue losses from this form of smuggling have been reduced by 76 per cent. compared to last year, with cross-channel passenger smuggling of beer almost eliminated and cross-channel passenger smuggling of wine and spirits more than halved.
	Building on these successes, and those of its wider efforts to tackle tobacco smuggling, the Government published alongside the PBR a paper "Tackling Indirect Tax Fraud" which sets out the strategic principles that underlie the Government's approach to tackling fraud and outlines the steps being taken to tackle other forms of fraud and smuggling in the alcohol sector.

Smuggling

Nigel Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with Commissioner Bolkestein regarding distortions to the working of the Single Market caused by the level of UK excise duty rates;
	(2)  what discussions he has had with Commissioner Bolkestein regarding HM Customs and Excise policy of policing at ports of entry;
	(3)  if he has been able to reach agreement with Commissioner Bolkestein regarding the confiscation of vehicles and goods from suspected smugglers before conviction.

Paul Boateng: I met Commissioner Bolkestein on 20 November and explained that the Government are totally committed both to the principle that EU citizens should be able to engage in cross border shopping for their own use in other member states and to tackling criminal smuggling. The Government are confident that the approach of UK Customs to tackling those individuals who seek to break the law by smuggling alcohol and tobacco into the UK is fully consistent with our EU obligations and that once the European Commission is fully informed of the situation, they too will be satisfied.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what records HM Customs and Excise are required to keep of the number of private cars seized by them; and what plans he has to change that requirement.

Paul Boateng: Customs collate centrally and publish annual statistics on the number of vehicles seized across the UK. At a local level, Customs maintain specific records of all vehicles seized to deal with appeals and court cases as well as for intelligence gathering.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much compensation was paid in each year since 1995 to drivers and their families from costs arising from cars wrongly impounded by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise, including (a) consequential costs arising from loss of use of a car, (b) loss of items in the car, (c) loss of earnings and (d) travel costs incurred in collecting the car from Her Majesty's Customs and Excise.

Paul Boateng: Information in this form is not centrally collated by Customs.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what procedures are in place for the audit and reporting of (a) the number of private cars impounded by HM Customs and Excise at Channel ports, (b) personal possessions contained in private cars impounded by HM Customs and Excise at Channel ports and (c) disposal of tax discs in cars disposed of by HM Customs and Excise.

Paul Boateng: At a local level, Customs maintain specific records of all vehicles seized to deal with appeals and court cases as well as for intelligence gathering. Personal possessions are returned to the owner either at the time of seizure, or can be collected within 30 days. Tax discs are an integral part of a vehicle to legalise road use and are retained. Local managers carry out assurance checks on all information held, and all Customs procedures are subject to internal audit and scrutiny by the National Audit Office.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue from the disposal of private cars and personal possessions in those cars was retained by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise in each of the last five years.

Paul Boateng: None. All moneys relating to the sale of seized vehicles are returned to the Exchequer.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what procedures are in place for (a) handling tax discs and (b) disposal of personal possessions in private cars which have been disposed of by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise at channel ports.

Paul Boateng: Once a vehicle has been forfeited to the Crown, Customs dispose of the vehicle in the most cost-effective way. If Customs choose to sell the vehicle at auction then the tax disc is sold as part of the vehicle. If the vehicle is crushed, Customs return the tax disc to the DVLA and the Exchequer is refunded.
	In the great majority of cases any personal possessions in private vehicles are taken by the individual at the time of seizure. However, Customs allow at least 30 days for the collection of personal possessions before they are disposed of.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many private cars were impounded by HM Customs and Excise at channel ports in each year since 1995; and how many have been released to their owners by HM Customs and Excise following appeals by the car owners.

Paul Boateng: Customs' centrally held information on the numbers of private vehicles seized does not distinguish the location at which seizure took place, nor is the number of vehicles restored on successful appeal centrally collated.
	For the number of vehicles seized across the whole of the UK from 1994–95 to 1997–98, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 18 June 1998, Official Report, column 274W. For the number of vehicles seized across the UK in 1998–99, 1999–2000 I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 15 January 2001, Official Report, column 125W. Figures for the number of vehicles seized by Customs across the UK during 2000–01 are contained in the Government's response to the independent report by John Roques into "The Collection of Excise Duties in HM Customs and Excise" (House of Commons command 5329, July 2001), a copy of which was placed in the Library on 19 July 2001.

Vehicle Seizures

Sue Doughty: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much revenue was raised from the disposal of personal possessions in private cars disposed of by Her Majesty's Customs and Excise in each of the last five years.

Paul Boateng: In the great majority of cases any personal possessions in private vehicles are taken by the individual at the time of seizure. However, Customs allow at least 30 days for the collection of personal possessions before they are disposed of. In the rare event that personal possessions are not claimed within a reasonable period, Customs dispose of them. It is not normally Customs practice to sell such items.

Scout Uniforms (VAT)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the imposition of VAT on certain scout uniforms.

Paul Boateng: VAT reliefs for young children's clothing and footwear apply also to items of scout uniform.

Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 272W, on Equitable Life, if he will inform the hon. Member for Christchurch as soon as the response has been sent to the Parliamentary Ombudsman.

Ruth Kelly: holding answer 27 November 2001
	The response was sent to the Parliamentary Ombudsman on 30 November.

Financial Services Authority

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidelines the FSA has issued to companies about reinsurance practices following the disclosure of Irish European Reinsurance Company's involvement with (a) Independent Insurance and (b) Equitable Life.

Ruth Kelly: The FSA's Interim Prudential Sourcebook for Insurance Companies already makes provisions covering reinsurance practices. In particular, it requires insurance companies to prepare their accounts following the insurance accounting guideline contained in the ABI Statement Of Recommended Practice. This covers the treatment of reinsurance contracts in some detail, and requires that the accounts should properly reflect the economic substance of any transaction.
	The Interim Prudential Sourcebook also requires companies to have appropriate procedures for assessing the creditworthiness of counterparties, including in particular reinsurers.
	In addition, the FSA has placed a responsibility on all firms to be "open and honest" with the regulator and, for certain firms covered by schemes of operation, there will be a specific requirement to disclose reinsurance arrangements and to notify the FSA of a material change to these.
	The FSA intends to review the use of financial reinsurance within the insurance market and the extent of the industry's reliance on it.

Customs and Excise

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he intends to publish the next departmental report and expenditure plans for HM Customs and Excise.

Paul Boateng: In April 2002.

Customs and Excise

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he intends to publish the annual report 2000–01 for HM Customs and Excise.

Dawn Primarolo: Customs hope to publish the annual report for Customs and Excise in late January 2002.

Equitable Life

Christopher Chope: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 19 November 2001, Official Report, column 135W, on Equitable Life, if he will give the total cost of the review; what is the sum of the costs which have already been recovered by way of fees imposed by (a) the PIA and (b) the Treasury; and what the total is of the remaining costs to be recovered by the FSA by way of fees.

Ruth Kelly: The FSA has informed me that its total costs in preparing the review were around £4 million, of which £1.3 million was incurred in the FSA's financial year ending 31 March 2001. These costs will have been recovered by £1.07 million of fees charged on behalf of the insurance directorate and £0.23 million on behalf of the PIA. The balance of £2.7 million will be recovered by subsequent fees.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to publish draft regulations to implement the aggregates levy.

Paul Boateng: Customs are in intensive discussions with representative industry bodies about detailed implementation of the levy and aim to issue draft regulations reflecting those discussions by the end of December.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the rate of aggregates levy (a) imposed and (b) planned by each member state of the European Union.

Paul Boateng: The aggregates levy is designed to address the environmental effects of aggregate extraction in the UK. Aggregate taxes in other EU member states are a matter for the individual states themselves.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely differential impact of the aggregates levy on each of the regions of the United Kingdom.

Paul Boateng: A regulatory impact assessment for the aggregates levy was published at the time of Budget 2000. It is available from the Customs and Excise website.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if imported concrete products will be subject to the aggregates levy.

Paul Boateng: No concrete products are subject to the aggregates levy.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what arrangement he plans under the aggregates levy for bad debt relief.

Paul Boateng: Primary legislation gives the Commissioners of Customs and Excise the power to make regulations relating to bad debt relief. Customs are in intensive discussions with representative industry bodies about this subject and aim to issue draft regulations reflecting those discussions by the end of December.

Aggregates Levy

David Lidington: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how he plans to regulate the relationship between the aggregates levy and existing contracts for aggregates.

Paul Boateng: Appropriate provision has been made in section 43 of the Finance Act 2001.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Public Service Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the public service agreement targets for a 1 per cent. reduction in unit spending per full-time equivalent (a) higher and (b) further education student in 1999–2000 over 1998–99.

Margaret Hodge: Between 1989 and 1997, publicly planned funding per full-time equivalent higher education student fell by over 36 per cent. from just under £7,600 to just over £4,800. Lord Dearing's national committee of inquiry into higher education concluded in 1997 that higher education institutions could not absorb the reduction planned by the previous Government of over 6 per cent. He proposed that higher education institutions should be asked to deliver no more than a 1 per cent. reduction in costs and the Government accepted his recommendations.
	In practice, the actual reduction in unit of funding per student in 1999–2000 was 0.3 per cent.
	Last November, the Government announced cash increases in publicly planned funding of £412 million, £268 million and £298 million over the three years to 2003–04. This means that for the first time in over a decade there will be a real-terms increase in the unit of funding per full-time equivalent student of 0.7 per cent. in 2001–02, with fully funded increases in student numbers over the following two years.
	The current PSA target for higher education is that while maintaining standards we will increase participation towards 50 per cent. of those aged 18 to 30 by the end of the decade.
	It is too early to comment on the achievement of the PSA target for further education. Data for 1999–2000 are not yet available. However, while there was a real-terms per capita funding cut of 5.8 per cent. between 1995–96 and 1998–99, under the current Government's spending plans funding to the sector has increased overall. The Government have announced year-on-year increases of £527 million and £237 million in 2001–02 and 2002–03 in publicly planned further education funding allocated to the Learning and Skills Council.

Women Role Models

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps have been taken to provide female students at all levels with women role models who have succeeded in traditionally male dominated fields.

Margaret Hodge: A number of steps have been taken, both by my Department and other Government Departments, as well as by institutions in the education sector, to provide both women and men with role models to encourage them to learn, train and work in non-traditional fields.
	For example, as a result of a very successful pilot programme offering girls work experience in non- traditional work areas such as construction, engineering, IT and telecommunications, my Department is taking forward taster days for girls and is currently working with the national education business partnership network on a roll-out of the programme for girls at key stage 4.
	The science and engineering ambassadors scheme is being launched in January 2002 as part of Science Year and has been jointly developed by DfES/DTI. It will give more young people the opportunity to interact with female role models who are practising scientists and engineers. The DTI, through the work programme of its promoting SET (science, engineering and technology) for women unit and engineering policy unit enables organisations such as the SETpoints, the careers education and business partnerships, Let's Twist at Bradford college and the WISE campaign to run events with women scientists and engineers, produce posters and magazines such as SPARK that promote positive images of women in non-traditional careers. Science Year is particularly targeting some of its resources and publicity at girls. For example, television advertisements and a careers video have featured girls and women. The faces of modern science photographic project includes a large number of role models for all under-represented groups and will result in the production of a book for use by careers advisers and ConneXions officers.
	Many colleges and training providers are actively engaged in programmes to attract more women into male dominated fields and a number of initiatives funded by the European Social Fund involve the use of women role models. WISE, mentioned above, the Association for Women in Science and Engineering, the Women's Engineering Society and the British Council are all proactively using women role models from within industry as a mechanism for encouraging other women to study in non-traditional fields.
	We are also encouraging men to undertake work in areas where they are under-represented, such as child care. The second phase of our national recruitment campaign, "Do Something You Love for a Living" is actively promoting the recruitment of men and people from ethnic minority backgrounds into the work force while placing a heavy emphasis on training and qualifications. We featured a male nursery nurse in one of our advertisements and screened this at times when there was likely to be a large male audience. Men are also featured in the campaign booklet and accompanying case studies and research into the effectiveness of the campaign showed that the advert featuring the man was the best-recalled one. Aside from raising the status of working in the sector, the focus on training and qualifications should encourage more men to respond to the campaign.

Supply Teachers

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many registered supply teachers there are in England and Wales.

Stephen Timms: We do not keep a central register of supply teachers.
	There were 19,600 short-term supply teachers (on contracts of less than one month) employed for the whole day in the English maintained schools sector on the 18 January 2001, the date of the annual census of teachers in service, approximately 4.6 per cent. of all teachers employed in the maintained schools sector.

Hardship Funds

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was allocated for hardship funds for universities in the United Kingdom, broken down by university, in (a) 2000–01 and (b) 2001–02.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 22 November 2001
	The Government have provided £93 million for higher education students through the access and hardship funds in 2001–02, over four times the amount in 1997–98. The funds are used to provide hardship payments and access bursaries, as well as fee waivers for part-time students on benefit and low incomes, and opportunity bursaries for young disadvantaged students through the excellence challenge programme.
	The following table shows amounts allocated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) for students in hardship in 2000–01 and 2001–02. In 2001–02, the funding allocated includes access bursaries for students with children. Access and hardship funds for institutions in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are a matter for the National Assembly for Wales, the Scottish Executive and the Northern Ireland Executive respectively.
	
		Final allocations for universities in England in 2000–01 and 2001–02
		
			 Universities  (19)2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Anglia Polytechnic University 691,486 854,662 
			 Aston University 276,030 278,577 
			 University of Bath 267,498 271,888 
			 Birbeck College 111,608 121,252 
			 University of Birmingham 875,448 901,753 
			 Bournemouth University 384,087 445,844 
			 University of Bradford 385,141 417,907 
			 University of Brighton 583,768 755,668 
			 University of Bristol 541,065 541,229 
			 Brunel University 588,193 647,004 
			 University of Cambridge 531,125 578,031 
			 University of Central England 778,045 872,064 
			 University of Central Lancashire 979,553 1,489,797 
			 City University 261,495 267,026 
			 Coventry University 606,472 644,015 
			 De Montfort University 1,249,159 1,415,411 
			 University of Derby 765,302 942,961 
			 University of Durham 521,220 555,678 
			 University of East Anglia 405,690 465,111 
			 University of East London 736,867 1,120,286 
			 University of Essex 227,538 257,669 
			 University of Exeter 444,830 480,717 
			 Goldsmiths College 353,339 457,685 
			 University of Greenwich 751,574 1,017,097 
			 University of Hertfordshire 727,393 947,762 
			 University of Huddersfield 678,624 751,882 
			 University of Hull 593,822 679,622 
			 Imperial College 452,918 423,603 
			 Keele University 309,558 335,842 
			 University of Kent at Canterbury 336,590 415,866 
			 King's College London 636,907 650,510 
			 Kingston University 570,969 643,022 
			 Lancaster University 425,412 445,961 
			 University of Leeds 874,808 1,086,166 
			 Leeds Metropolitan University 830,705 934,475 
			 University of Leicester 455,502 450,902 
			 University of Lincoln 577,290 727,194 
			 University of Liverpool 627,509 646,298 
			 Liverpool John Moores University 847,622 996,410 
			 London Guildhall University 667,305 951,555 
			 Loughborough University 474,876 466,898 
			 University of Luton 462,662 544,196 
			 University of Manchester 902,642 899,678 
			 UMIST 261,519 250,127 
			 Manchester Metropolitan University 1,388,324 1,610,662 
			 Middlesex University 1,082,189 1,475,900 
			 University of Newcastle upon Tyne 598,166 587,039 
			 University of North London 872,810 1,214,406 
			 University of Northumbria at Newcastle 798,650 923,715 
			 University of Nottingham 568,494 551,515 
			 Nottingham Trent University 984,801 1,081,621 
			 Open University 1,042,445 993,033 
			 University of Oxford 625,931 579,448 
			 Oxford Brookes University 488,594 562,141 
			 University of Plymouth 901,311 1,143,584 
			 University of Portsmouth 706,458 818,947 
			 Queen Mary, University of London 439,926 464,513 
			 University of Reading 423,670 453,033 
			 Royal Holloway, University of London 245,889 236,960 
			 University of Salford 820,310 946,017 
			 University of Sheffield 812,753 954,623 
			 Sheffield Hallam University 1,123,355 1,328,270 
			 University of Southampton 672,875 697,594 
			 South Bank University 875,250 1,338,506 
			 Staffordshire University 825,018 944,026 
			 University of Sunderland 747,135 898,232 
			 University of Surrey 220,311 212,410 
			 University of Surrey Roehampton 418,472 540,877 
			 University of Sussex 388,644 474,880 
			 University of Teesside 521,456 652,280 
			 Thames Valley University 734,478 1,022,286 
			 University College London 660,411 655,840 
			 University of Warwick 487,581 516,493 
			 University of West of England, Bristol 901,535 1,033,502 
			 University of Westminster 729,804 978,103 
			 University of Wolverhampton 1,042,587 1,353,182 
			 University of York 388,130 429,327 
		
	
	
		
			 General college 2000–01 2001–02 
		
		
			 Bath Spa University College 209,428 309,506 
			 Bolton Institute of Higher Education 409,387 537,382 
			 Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College 311,510 356,388 
			 Canterbury Christ Church University College 328,053 429,332 
			 Cheltenham and Gloucester College of HE 371,907 446,249 
			 Chester College of Higher Education 168,486 204,287 
			 University College Chichester 239,544 318,550 
			 Edge Hill College of Higher Education 336,041 418,087 
			 King Alfred's College, Winchester 199,854 223,519 
			 Liverpool Hope 329,629 419,066 
			 University College Northampton 486,555 550,760 
			 College of Ripon and York St. John 192,368 220,291 
			 St Mary's College 127,618 137,086 
			 Southampton Institute 753,050 794,565 
			 University College Worcester 229,879 294,181 
			
			 Specialist Colleges   
			 Bishop Grosseteste College 54,511 58,845 
			 Arts Institute at Bournemouth (20)0 116,650 
			 Bretton Hall 179,843 (21)0 
			 Institute of Cancer Research 0 3,840 
			 Central School of Speech and Drama 42,087 47,328 
			 Conservatoire of Dance and Drama 0 14,294 
			 Cranfield University 136,777 131,722 
			 Cumbria College of Art and Design 66,612 73,901 
			 Dartingdon College of Arts 34,911 46,442 
			 Institute of Education 113,454 144,679 
			 Falmouth College of Arts 84,247 110,769 
			 Harper Adams University College 57,639 55,565 
			 Homerton College, Cambridge 68,431 (22)0 
			 Kent Institute of Art and Design 118,665 123,269 
			 University of London (Institutes and Activities) 30,489 26,175 
			 London Business School 23,633 21,270 
			 London School of Economics and Political Science 145,905 140,045 
			 London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine 18,905 17,633 
			 The London Institute 663,760 884,242 
			 Newman College 83,473 111,666 
			 Northern School of Contemporary Dance 11,273 12,756 
			 Norwich School of Art and Design 56,324 70,196 
			 School of Oriental and African Studies 132,870 183,514 
			 School of Pharmacy 28,502 28,442 
			 Ravensbourne College 40,536 54,936 
			 RCN Institute 20,476 25,783 
			 Rose Bruford College 32,505 36,185 
			 Royal Academy of Music 45,736 43,772 
			 Royal Agricultural College 0 18,042 
			 Royal College of Art 159,848 143,863 
			 Royal College of Music 44,979 40,481 
			 Royal Northern College of Music 26,067 25,260 
			 Royal Veterinary College 31,414 38,232 
			 St George's Hospital Medical School 47,852 73,960 
			 College of St. Mark and St. John 193,382 269,175 
			 St. Martin's College 305,004 440,093 
			 The Surrey Institute of Art and Design University College 135,961 150,707 
			 Trinity and All Saints 200,478 210,760 
			 Trinity College of Music 23,800 24,030 
			 Wimbledon School of Art 34,239 44,376 
			 Writtle College 92,300 97,560 
			  
			 Total 56,849,126 66,643,000 
		
	
	(19) In addition to the allocations listed in 2000–01, the Government made available a total of £14.8 million for mature student bursaries. HEFCE is not able to provide a breakdown of the bursary allocations.
	(20) Arts Institute at Bournemouth, Institute of Cancer Research, Conservatoire of Dance and Drama and Royal Agricultural College are all showing not to have an allocation in 2000–01, as these institutions were not funded by HEFCE at that time.
	(21) Bretton has no allocation in 2001–02 as it has now merged with Leeds Metropolitan University.
	(22) Homerton College received an allocation in 2000–01, but for 2001–02 their allocation was added to the University of Cambridge's total.

Further Education Funding

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the operating costs were of (a) the Further Education and Funding Council and (b) the training and enterprise councils in relation to their functions in administering the funding of further education in (i) 1999–2000 and (ii) 1998–1999.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 22 November 2001
	The total Further Education Funding Council (FEFC) cost of administration taken from its published accounts was £23.3 million in 1998–99 and £25.5 million in 1999–2000.
	There were no specific grants paid to TECs by the DfES for further education and it is not possible to identify how much was spent by them on this particular activity.
	The Learning and Skills Council has taken over the functions previously carried out by the FEFC, much of what was done by TECs, as well as various activities carried out by the Department for Education and Employment and Government offices. It has also taken on additional activities such as greater involvement and intervention at local level to raise basic skills, and managing a 9 per cent. real terms increase in the overall programme budget allocated to post-16 education and training compared to plans for 2000–01. In spite of this, its overall operating costs (its administration budget this year is £188 million) are significantly lower than the £270 million—£280 million which was estimated to have been spent by its predecessors.

Higher Education

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many, and what percentage of, pupils entered higher education at age 18 from the Isle of Wight in (a) 1996, (b) 1997, (c) 1998, (d) 1999 and (e) 2000.

Margaret Hodge: The available data are shown in the table.
	
		Students aged 18 from the Isle of Wight local education authority entering higher education courses(23) at HE institutions(24) in the UK
		
			 Academic year Entrants As proportion of 18-year-old population (%) 
		
		
			 1996–97 153 12 
			 1997–98 165 12 
			 1998–99 166 11 
			 1999–2000 142 10 
			 2000–01 186 13 
		
	
	(23) Full-time and part-time undergraduate courses, as at December 1.
	(24) Data on the home LEA of students who enter HE courses at FE institutions is not available centrally, so these students have been excluded from the answer.

Higher Education

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, pursuant to her answer of 8 November 2001, Official Report, column 511W, on higher education, if she will break down the data given to (a) teaching staff, (b) research staff and (c) combined teaching and research staff.

Margaret Hodge: The data are shown in the table.
	
		Academic staff in UK higher education institutions
		
			Teaching staff  Research staff Combined teaching and research 
		
		
			 1995–96
			 Full-time 9,000 33,210 69,250 
			 Part-time 4,060 4,130 6,930 
			 Total 13,060 37,340 76,180 
			
			 1996–97
			 Full-time 8,210 33,350 69,220 
			 Part-time 4,790 4,360 7,650 
			 Total 13,000 37,700 76,870 
			 
			 1997–98
			 Full-time 7,530 33,800 69,160 
			 Part-time 5,330 4,030 8,230 
			 Total 12,860 37,830 77,390 
			 
			 1998–99
			 Full-time 6,400 34,560 71,420 
			 Part-time 5,550 4,400 8,740 
			 Total 11,950 38,960 80,160 
			 
			 1999–2000
			 Full-time 6,860 35,080 71,860 
			 Part-time 5,990 6,310 9,660 
			 Total 12,850 41,390 81,510 
		
	
	Source:
	Higher Education Statistics Agency's Staff Record. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.

School Trips (Risk Assessment)

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what duty is placed on (a) schools and (b) local education authorities to undertake a risk assessment when organising school visits by bus;
	(2)  what guidance she gives to local education authorities about ensuring the safety of pupils on school visits.

Ivan Lewis: The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require schools and local education authorities, as employers, to assess the risks of all types of school visit.
	My Department issued 'Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits: a Good Practice Guide' for schools in England in 1998. Supplementary advice will become available in December.

National Curriculum Tests

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if the results of individual primary schools in national curriculum tests for (a) reading and (b) mathematics at age seven years are available centrally to her Department.

Ivan Lewis: Yes. For pupils aged seven (key stage 1), my Department collects individual pupil level data, by school and local education authority, for task and test results in English and mathematics and teacher assessment results in English, mathematics and science. In English, the task and test results are split into reading task, reading test, writing task and spelling. These results are aggregated at national level and published together with the key stage 2 and 3 results in a statistical release.

Streaming

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what recent assessment she has made of the continental European system of advancement from year to year based on academic performance rather than age;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the relative efficiency of teaching classes grouped by (a) age and (b) ability.

Stephen Timms: The Government support a flexible approach to pupil grouping, including setting by ability where appropriate. The White Paper "Schools—achieving success" emphasises the need to increase opportunities for all pupils to progress in line with their abilities. There will be more flexibility in future for younger gifted pupils to learn alongside older pupils.

School Sport

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to promote sport and PE in schools.

Stephen Timms: I refer my hon. Friend to the replies I gave on 26 October 2001, Official Report, column 459W and 22 November 2001, Official Report, column 451W respectively. The number of school sport co-ordinators has now increased to 372.

Nursery Places

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what level of funding has been made available to Leicestershire to provide free nursery places to three-year-olds; and what assessment she has made of the total cost of providing free nursery places for all three-year-olds in Leicestershire by 2004.

Margaret Hodge: In 2001–02 £3.1 million has been made available to provide 2,638 free nursery education places for three-year-olds in Leicestershire. This level of funding could increase before the end of 2001–02 if Leicestershire receives additional funding in the spring term as a result of its recent bid for additional places.
	No assessment has yet been made of the total cost of providing free nursery education places for all three-year-olds in Leicestershire by September 2004. This will be dependent on the demand for places and also the level of provision that the local education authority decides to make available for three-year-olds from its own resources.

Early Years Development Partnerships

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance her Department gives to local education authorities on their relationship with early year development partnerships.

Margaret Hodge: Strategic guidance is issued to local education authorities and early years development and child care partnerships every two years. This includes guidance on the relationship between the two.
	The strategic guidance is supported by implementation guidance issued annually which sets out the operational framework in which the local education authority and early years development and child care partnership should work over the coming year.

Early Years Development Partnerships

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance her Department gives to local education authorities about providing additional funding to early year development partnerships to provide free nursery places for all three-year-olds.

Margaret Hodge: The Department for Education and Skills does not provide guidance to local education authorities on providing additional funding to their early years development and child care partnerships for free nursery education places for three-year-olds. Such spending priorities are determined locally and are at the discretion of the local authority.
	In 2001–02 £3.1 million has been made available to provide 2,638 free nursery education places for three- year-olds in Leicestershire. This level of funding could increase before the end of 2001–02, if Leicestershire receives additional funding in the spring term as a result of its recent bid for additional places.

Teacher Vacancies

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the source was of the figures she used which illustrate the gap between the supply and demand of teachers in her speech on the social market function.

Stephen Timms: The graph on page 11 of my social market foundation pamphlet shows two columns for 2001. The lower figure of 410,000 is the number of teachers in post. The higher figure, of some 435,000, includes vacancies and occasional teachers covering for other teachers. The figures are drawn from the publication "Statistical First Release on Teachers in Service and Teacher Vacancies"—the latest edition is for April 2001, and this is in the House of Commons Library and on the DfES website. The final column for 2006 is a projection based on recent trends.

Teacher Vacancies

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teacher vacancies there were in Bedfordshire in October (a) 1997 and (b) 2001.

Stephen Timms: The information is not available for the dates requested. Full-time teacher vacancies in maintained nursery, primary, secondary and special schools reported by the Bedfordshire local authority were as follows:
	
		
			 Date Vacancies 
		
		
			 January 1998 26 
			 January 2001 76

School Finance

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many Government initiatives offer additional funding which require schools to lodge specific applications.

Stephen Timms: Schools are required to lodge specific applications for the following initiatives, which attract additional funding:
	Teachers' Threshold Grant
	Teachers' Performance Pay Progression Grant
	Welcome Back Bonuses
	Golden Hellos
	Grammar School/Non-selective School Partnerships
	Training Schools
	Specialist Schools
	Grant Maintained School Transitional Grant for Insurance
	Capital funding for Voluntary Aided Schools.
	Most other additional funding is allocated and paid to local education authorities through the standards fund: they must devolve around 75 per cent. of the grant to their schools to spend according to their own needs and priorities. It is for authorities and schools to agree the particular arrangements for allocating the grant to schools. Almost all standards fund grants are allocated to LEAs on a formula basis and the Government expect LEAs to devolve grants to schools by a fair formula, in which case schools should not have to apply for grant.

School Finance

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of total school spending in England and Wales is spent on schemes and improvements instigated by her Department.

Stephen Timms: The table shows the total national SSA allocation and total national grant funding for schools in England in 2001–02.
	
		
			  £ million 
		
		
			 National SSA Allocation: 2001–02  
			 Total SSA (25)22,512.900 
			   
			 National Grant Funding for Schools: 2001–02  
			 Standards Fund revenue 1,524.810 
			 School Standards Grant 600.306 
			 Education Budget Support Grant 52.000 
			 Education Action Zones 58.400 
			 Teachers Pay Reform Grant (26)— 
			 Transitional Funding (former GM Schools) 9.600 
			 Capital 1,818.404 
			  
			 Total 4,063.520 
		
	
	(25) Including support for Early Years, Youth Service and other non-school spending by local education authorities
	(26) The figures will not be known for a while, but Threshold costs for each academic year are expected to be in the region of £450 million
	Schools and local education authorities have the freedom to decide how to spend their education budget support grant and school standards grant. Schools also have considerable freedom over the use of their standards fund allocations.
	Funding for schools in Wales is the responsibility of the National Assembly for Wales.

School Finance

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of total school spending in England and Wales is allocated to teacher salaries and related costs.

Stephen Timms: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is responsible for England only. The latest available data are for the financial year 1999–2000. The proportion of total spending on teacher salaries and related costs in pre-primary and primary schools is 62 per cent., and 66 per cent. for secondary schools.

Teacher Housing

Paul Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent discussions she has had with local authorities on teacher housing; and if she will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: Officials and Ministers are in regular contact with local education authorities on a range of issues concerning teachers including housing. Policy on key worker housing is a matter for the Department for Transport Local Government and the Regions (DTLR). Officials and Ministers in this Department work closely with DTLR colleagues to deliver programme such as the starter home initiative which will provide over 3,500 teachers with help to buy their first home.

Autistic Spectrum Disorders

Phil Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to increase funding allocated to deal with children diagnosed with difficulties in the autistic spectrum disorders.

Stephen Timms: Funding is not made available for specific categories of special educational need. Rather, funding is allocated and distributed via local education authorities (LEAs), which have a duty to provide appropriately for all children in their area. This includes the duty to identify children's individual special educational needs and to deliver the most appropriate provision to meet those needs.
	More than £23 billion is available annually for the education of school children, including children with special educational needs. Over £1 billion of this is used by LEAs to provide additional support for children with special educational needs.
	We have also made £91 million of supported expenditure available for special educational needs in next year's standards fund (2002–03). This is five times the amount available in 1997–98. The fund can be used for a range of activities, including training for staff in special educational needs, improvements in speech and language therapy provision for children with communication difficulties and the greater inclusion of children with SEN in the mainstream. This latter includes early intervention for pupils with SEN, training on child development and behaviour management, and improved links between special and mainstream schools.

Domestic Violence

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance she provides to schools to help education professionals identify students affected by the impact of domestic violence.

Ivan Lewis: Children who experience or witness domestic violence can suffer in many ways, and the education service has a significant role to play in identifying these and children who are at risk of harm, or who are in need. We issued guidance to all schools about their role in identifying the needs of children affected by a range of difficulties, including domestic violence, in 1995.
	My officials are in the process of reviewing and updating that guidance to reflect the guidance in "Working together to Safeguard Children", the Government's most recent guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children. Among other things, this stresses that everyone working with children should be alert to the frequent interrelationship between domestic violence and the abuse and neglect of children. These messages will be reflected in the updated guidance to schools that my Department will issue next year.

Domestic Violence

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what support she offers to education professionals to help them deal with the impact of domestic violence on their students.

Ivan Lewis: My Department's guidance to schools about their role in protecting children strongly advises that all schools should have an appropriately trained designated teacher who is known to all staff. Designated teachers provide support and guidance on child protection issues to other education staff. They also liaise with other agencies, including social services and the police, to safeguard the best interests of children.
	In addition, from next September schools will introduce the new curriculum subject "Personal, Social and Health Education and Citizenship". Within this subject there is scope to discuss domestic violence in a safe environment, including how families deal with it and where to go for help.

Education Action Zones

John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what information she has on which schools, in education action zones in which McDonald's has been a partner, have used that company's schools resource packs.

Stephen Timms: We hold no information on which schools in education action zones have used McDonald's schools resource packs.

Education Action Zones

John Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in which education action zones McDonald's has been a partner.

Stephen Timms: Two education action zones (EAZs), Weston and Ellesmere Port, have franchisees of McDonald's as partners on their zones' action forum.
	The EAZs listed have McDonald's as a sponsor and contributor for cash and in-kind donations:
	Statutory EAZs
	Herefordshire EAZ
	Newcastle EAZ
	North East Lincolnshire—Grimsby EAZ
	Plymouth EAZ
	South Tyneside EAZ
	Breightmet and Tonge (Bolton) EAZ
	Bridgwater EAZ
	Dingle, Granby and Toxteth EAZ
	Downham and Bellingham EAZ
	Dudley EAZ
	East Manchester EAZ
	Gillingham EAZ
	North Stockton EAZ
	North West Shropshire EAZ
	Preston EAZ
	Speke Garston EAZ
	Excellence in Cities (EiC) Action Zones
	Barking Gateway to Excellence EiC Action Zone
	Liverpool—EXCITE EiC Action Zone
	Liverpool—North Deanery EiC Action Zone
	Willington—North Tyneside EiC Action Zone.

Student Loans

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what facility exists to pay off the outstanding balance on a student loan.

Margaret Hodge: Borrowers can pay off the outstanding balance on their student loans direct to the Student Loans Company at any time. Borrowers who wish to do so are advised to contact the SLC to arrange the most appropriate way to make the payments.

Student Loans

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to require the Student Loans Company to issue regular statements to individuals about the outstanding balance, repayments made and the projected term of the loan.

Margaret Hodge: Borrowers under the pre-1998 scheme (mortgage style loans) receive annual statements from the Student Loans Company. They sign a loan agreement which sets out the repayment terms—five years for less than five loans and seven years for five or more loans.
	For borrowers under the new income-contingent loans scheme, repayment is collected by their employers through deductions from their earnings, in line with tax and national insurance contributions. These borrowers will get a statement from the SLC after the end of the tax year, once the SLC has received details of their repayments from the Inland Revenue.
	Self-employed borrowers would receive their statements after the end of the tax year as long as they made their self-assessment returns to the Inland Revenue on time.
	Loan repayments under the income contingent scheme rise or fall with earnings. They do not, therefore, have a projected repayment term.

Student Loans

Huw Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to improve the information available by the Student Loans Company about the balance on an individual's outstanding loan.

Margaret Hodge: Borrowers under the pre-1998 scheme (mortgage style loans) can contact the Student Loans Company at any time to obtain information on their outstanding loan.
	For borrowers under the new income-contingent loan scheme, repayments are collected by their employers, through deductions from their earnings, in line with tax and national insurance contributions.
	These borrowers will get a statement from the SLC after the end of the tax year. This will happen after the SLC has received details of their repayments from the Inland Revenue.
	Self-employed borrowers would receive their statements after the end of the tax year as long as they make their self-assessment returns to the Inland Revenue on time.
	My officials are currently working with the SLC to find better ways of providing account updates for income contingent loan borrowers, in particular to ensure that repayments are stopped as soon as the loan is repaid.

Student Loans

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many student loans have been issued; and what is the total value of student loans issued, broken down by each LEA area.

Margaret Hodge: In academic year 2000–01, there were 648,500 loans to the value of £1,920.8 million issued to students normally domiciled in England and Wales. Information broken down by LEA area is not held centrally, but we are asking the Student Loans Company to write to the hon. Gentleman further on this.

Education Initiatives

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many statutory (a) plans and (b) reports (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools complete annually;
	(2)  how many new education initiatives that require action by head teachers have been launched by her Department in the current financial year.

Stephen Timms: Primary and secondary schools are statutorily required to produce each year a report from the governing body for parents, a report for parents on their children's achievements, and an annual budget plan. Since the start of April 2001, the Department for Education and Skills has sent primary schools 20 documents for action of which nine were new, and secondary schools 22 documents for action of which nine were new.

Sex Discrimination (Single-faith Schools)

Gwyneth Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will ensure that existing sex discrimination legislation is enforced in respect of single-faith schools.

Stephen Timms: All schools in the maintained sector are already required to comply with existing sex discrimination legislation.

Departmental Underspend

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she expects to spend the £1.44 billion that was allocated to her Department for 2000–01 but not spent.

Estelle Morris: Of the £1.44 billion available in end-year flexibility from the former Department for Education and Employment, my Department has so far drawn down £584 million to spend this year and transferred £326 million to the Department for Work and Pensions. The remaining funds have been allocated and will be drawn down when needed.

"Curriculum Online"

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she will publish the Government's conclusions following the consultation paper, "Curriculum Online"; and if she will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The consultation paper "Curriculum Online" closed on 1 July; we received 159 responses, which have now been analysed. We are considering the responses and are currently making arrangements for publication shortly.
	In summary, the responses demonstrated widespread support for the Government's vision of a service to provide teachers with easy online access to a consistent, coherent and comprehensive set of digital learning materials to support teaching across the curriculum.

Departmental Expenditure Limit

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will estimate the total unallocated funds within her departmental expenditure limit (a) at the start of the financial year and (b) to date; and what was the month seven forecast on outturn underspend against her departmental expenditure limit in (i) real and (ii) percentage terms.

Estelle Morris: The Department for Education and Employment annual report for 2000–01 (Cm 5102) contains the departmental unallocated provision (DUP) set for the present financial year in table 4.2, under the line entitled "Emergency Reserve".
	There has been no draw down of the Department's DUP to date. Outturn against six-month forecast for each request for resources will be published in the winter supplementary estimates summary request for supply as usual.

University Resources

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to include university interaction with the community when assessing the allocation of resources to universities.

Margaret Hodge: The higher education reach-out to business and the community fund and its successor, the higher education innovation fund, have given higher education institutions (HEIs) the opportunity to apply for funding for interaction with the community.
	Furthermore, the higher education active community fund of £27 million will be distributed over three years to HEIs to support volunteering among students and staff. Volunteering helps HEIs to build bridges with their communities; it helps students to gain workplace experience and staff to develop their careers; and it helps voluntary sector organisations gain access to higher level skills and knowledge. The HE active community fund will assist in the creation of 14,000 new volunteering opportunities for HE students and staff.
	Additionally, higher education institutions are receiving £57 million of widening participation funding over three years from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) as part of the Government's excellence challenge policy. This money helps institutions to reach out to more young people from communities who do not have a tradition of entering higher education.

Student Drop-outs

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the first year student drop-out rate was in new universities in (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999 and (d) 2000.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The available information on non-continuation rates is contained in "Performance Indicators in Higher Education", published by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The figures show, for each individual HE institution in the UK, the proportion of entrants to full-time first degree courses who do not continue in higher education beyond the first year. HEFCE also calculates a sector-wide non-continuation rate, but nothing is published for all new universities in aggregate. Copies of the HEFCE publications covering students starting courses in 1996–97 and 1997–98 are available in the House Library; prior to 1996–97, non-continuation rates were not published for individual HEIs.

Primary Schools

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will allow the redesignation of primary schools as three to 11 year-old schools at the request of local education authorities.

Stephen Timms: Where a local education authority wishes to alter the age range of a community primary school, by a year or more, it must publish notices to do so after consulting all interested parties, in particular the local early years development and child care partnership. If there are no objections and the proposals are not linked to others to be decided by the local school organisation committee, the local education authority may determine to implement them. In other cases it will be for the school organisation committee, or, where the school organisation committee does not reach a unanimous view, the Schools Adjudicator, to decide whether the change can be made. In the case of voluntary or foundation schools it is for the governing body to publish proposals, but the decision- making procedure is otherwise the same. The Secretary of State no longer decides such proposals.

Higher Education Review

David Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the terms of reference are for the higher education review.

Margaret Hodge: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State set out the scope of the current review of higher education in her speech at the London Guildhall university on 22 October 2001.
	The review will cover the key areas that form the overall mission of the higher education sector, looking to the longer-term structure of incentives required to ensure that each is resourced and supported. The areas being considered in the review are:
	Widening participation
	World-class research
	Linking universities with industry and communities
	Teaching excellence
	Management and leadership.

Class Sizes

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what initiatives her Department has in place to reduce class sizes in English secondary schools.

Stephen Timms: The average size of a secondary class taught by one teacher in England in January 2001 was 22.0. The January 2001 figure also shows that the secondary pupil/teacher ratio improved for the first time in 10 years and now stands at 17.1. The improvement reflects increased Government spending on schools.

Teachers' Pensions

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she intends to make provision for increases in employers' contributions to teachers' pension costs in 2002–03 in her support to education authorities.

Stephen Timms: In 2002–03 education standard spending will increase by over £1.3 billion, a 6 per cent. rise on this year's figures. The 6 per cent. increase is enough to cover all the cost pressures on local education authorities next year, including the rise in employers' contributions to teachers' pensions.

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much was raised in sponsorship by each specialist school since its year of designation.

Stephen Timms: There are no specific requirements for specialist schools to raise sponsorship after designation and we do not keep any records about this.

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what is the average (a) pupil-teacher ratio in secondary schools in England and (b) pupil- teacher ratio for specialist schools.

Stephen Timms: The pupil-teacher ratio in maintained secondary schools as at January 2001 was 17.1.
	The equivalent figure for maintained secondary specialist schools was 16.9.

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make a statement on the various means of selection used by those specialist schools which select a proportion of their intake; and what advice has been given by her Department on the means of selection which may be used.

Stephen Timms: We do not hold information on the means of selection. Admission arrangements are set locally by a school's admission authority (local education authorities for community and controlled schools, and the governing body for aided and foundation schools), and this includes deciding how children will be tested for their aptitude for a particular subject. My Department's code of practice on school admissions (1999) advises that:
	"tests used to identify whether a pupil has aptitude for a particular subject should be objective, have a distinctive subject focus, should not discriminate against applicants on the grounds of gender, ethnic origin, disability or family background, and that they must test for the subject aptitude concerned, not for any other aptitude or for ability".

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list those specialist schools which select a proportion of their pupils by aptitude for their specialist subjects; and what percentage of pupils is so selected in each school.

Stephen Timms: The latest available information is for school year 1999–2000. For that year, specialist schools which had selected a proportion of their pupils by aptitude for a subject or subjects relevant to their specialist designation, together with the percentage of pupils selected in each school, is shown in the table.
	
		Specialist schools: selection by aptitude
		
			 Specialism School LEA Percentage 
		
		
			 Technology Archbishop Blanch School Liverpool 5.6 
			 Technology Archbishop Temple School Lancashire 10.0 
			 Language Bohunt School Hampshire 10.0 
			 Arts Brentwood Ursuline Convent School Essex 10.0 
			 Technology Chaucer Technology School Kent Up to 100 
			 Arts Chestnut Grove School Wandsworth 16.0 
			 Technology Cornwallis School Kent 10.0 
			 Technology Deacon's School Peterborough, City 15.0 
			 Technology George Spencer GM School Nottinghamshire 10.0 
			 Technology Heathside School Surrey 4.0 
			 Language Hockerill Anglo European School Hertfordshire 10.0 
			 Arts Intake High School Leeds 10.0 
			 Technology Lodge Park School Northamptonshire 10.0 
			 Technology Lynn Grove VA High School Norfolk 15.0 
			 Technology Mill Hill County High School Barnet, London borough of 10.0 
			 Technology Ninestiles School Birmingham 10.0 
			 Sports Oakbank School Bradford 10.0 
			 Sports Oldfield School Bath and North East Somerset 10.0 
			 Technology Philip Morant School Essex 15.0 
			 Technology Sandwich Technology School Kent 10.0 
			 Technology Small Heath School Birmingham 10.0 
			 Technology St. Margaret's C of E High School Liverpool 15.0 
			 Technology St. Martin's School Essex 10.0 
			 Arts St. Marylebone School (The) Westminster 10.0 
			 Sports Wye Valley School (The) Buckinghamshire 10.0 
		
	
	Notes:
	This information was taken from progress reports submitted by 403 schools in December 2000. Progress reports for schools operational as of September 2000 are currently being received but the information from these has not yet been collated.
	The 1998 School Standards and Framework Act provides for schools with a specialism to select up to 10 per cent. of their intake on the basis of aptitude for a specialist subject prescribed in regulations. Prior to the 1998 Act schools had greater discretion over aptitude selection and this accounts for the percentages above 10 per cent.

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many specialist schools (a) allow primary schools to use their facilities and (b) provide specialist teaching in neighbouring primary schools.

Stephen Timms: We do not hold collective records of specialist school involvement with primary schools under these headings. However, all specialist schools have arrangements with primary schools whereby the latter benefit from use of the specialist school's facilities or staff time or both.

Specialist Schools

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many specialist schools allow their local community to have free use of the specialist facilities.

Stephen Timms: We expect every specialist school to have arrangements whereby some members of the local community benefit from the use of some of the school's facilities. We do not collect data on the ways in which this expectation is realised.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many letters her Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Ivan Lewis: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives and Departments and agencies, and performance in handling them, is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering the year 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001, the volume of correspondence received by my Department and percentage of replies within the set target was:
	Total volume of ministerial correspondence received: 1,783
	Percentage of replies sent within the target: 71 per cent.

Recruitment and Retention Fund

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills for what reason the recruitment and retention fund is limited to two financial years.

Stephen Timms: Funding of £35 million for the recruitment and retention fund was made available in April and we said that there would be at least that available next year. No decisions have been made concerning the future of the fund.

Recruitment and Retention Fund

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what criteria were used to allocate the recruitment and retention fund.

Stephen Timms: The fund was allocated on the basis of vacancy data from the annual census of vacancies conducted each January averaged over the three years 1998–2000.

Terrorism

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much she forecasts will be spent in the current financial year by her Department as a direct result of measures associated with the current action against terrorism.

Ivan Lewis: The additional costs forecast to be incurred by the Department for Education and Skills on enhanced security measures in the current financial year, as a direct result of measures associated with the current action against terrorism, is £233,783. That figure includes £100,000 for IT network resilience.

SOLICITOR-GENERAL

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Solicitor-General how many letters her Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Harriet Harman: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and Departments and agencies, and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office, on 6 April 2001, Official Report, columns 325–27W. Between 20 June and 20 June 2001 a total of 22 letters were received by my Department from hon. and right hon. Members.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Solicitor-General how many and what proportion of letters received by her Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Harriet Harman: Of the 22 letters received by my Department from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July, 95 per cent. were replied to in under 15 working days and 100 per cent. were replied to in under 20 working days.
	During June and July some 212 letters were received from members of the public and of these 70 per cent. received replies within the target of 20 working days.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Zimbabwe

Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations (a) his Department and (b) international organisations to which the UK belongs, have made to the Government of Zimbabwe on the approval of a Public Order and Security Bill and the operation of free media.

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Zimbabwe regarding the proposed introduction of a new Public Order and Security Bill in Zimbabwe.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 28 November 2001
	The Government of Zimbabwe have said that they plan to table a Public Order and Security Bill, to replace the Law and Order (Maintenance) Act, introduced in 1960. The Bill itself has not yet come before the Zimbabwe Parliament. Discussion at this stage would thus be premature. The early indications are that, if enacted, the Act could have a profoundly negative impact on freedom of expression in Zimbabwe.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many letters his Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Jack Straw: My Department received 1,349 letters from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July 2001.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Jack Straw: Of the 1,349 letters received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July:
	(a) 72 per cent. were replied to in under 15 days;
	(b) 79 per cent. were replied to in under 20 days;
	(c) 81 per cent. were replied to in under 30 days;
	(d) 82 per cent. were replied to in under 40 days;
	(e) 18 per cent. were replied to in over 40 days.

Joint Entry Clearance Unit

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken (a) to assess the extent of and (b) to raise awareness of institutional racism with entry clearance officers working for the Joint Entry Clearance Unit.

Ben Bradshaw: All correspondence to the Joint Entry Clearance Unit is monitored for allegations of racism. The work of entry clearance officers is scrutinised by the independent monitor, who reports to Parliament on the quality of the decision making process. The Parliamentary Ombudsman can investigate allegations of maladministration, including racism. He has received one such complaint this year, which was unfounded.
	All entry clearance staff are trained in race awareness.

Sudan

Hilton Dawson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of Sudan about the recent bombing of civilian and humanitarian facilities in Malualkon, Bahr El Ghazal; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: We are aware of recent aerial bombing incidents in Bahr El Ghazal which affected humanitarian operations there. The UN have made strong protests to the Sudanese Government about these incidents. We regularly call on the Government of Sudan, both bilaterally and within the framework of the EU Sudan dialogue, to stop the indiscriminate aerial bombardment of civilian and humanitarian targets. We have urged both sides to stop immediately hostilities in order to create an environment conducive to negotiations and to engage in a continuous and sustained negotiation towards a just and lasting political settlement.

Royal Visits

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how many occasions in the past five years members of the Royal Family, other than Her Majesty the Queen, Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, have been accommodated (a) in the residences of United Kingdom representatives overseas and (b) at public expense when primarily involved on private visits overseas.

Jack Straw: Members of the Royal Family on private visits overseas may be accommodated at the residences of UK representatives overseas, particularly if security questions are involved, but no consolidated record is kept.
	The FCO does not pay hotel and other bills when members of the Royal Family travel privately.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  how many letters her Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of letters received by her Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Clare Short: We received 139 letters from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July. Of these, 98 were answered in less than 15 days, 17 in less than 20 days and two in over 40 days. Twenty two letters did not require a response.

Tuvalu

Nigel Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance her Department is making available to the people of Tuvalu.

Clare Short: DFID does not provide bilateral assistance to Tuvalu. My Department administers a regional programme in the Pacific totalling some £4 million per year, which is inclusive of the poorest Pacific island countries. We work closely with key regional partners including the Form Secretariat, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) and South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC). Given the regional nature of the programme, it is not possible to determine exactly how much of this assistance goes directly to Tuvalu. DFID also contributes to the multilateral programmes maintained by the Asian Development Bank, World bank, the EU and the UN from which Tuvalu benefits.

Animal Health Research

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement about the future of the Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh.

Clare Short: My Department has contracted the Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine at the university of Edinburgh to manage our animal health research programme.
	We have no responsibility for the future of the centre.

HOUSE OF COMMONS

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the President of the Council 
	(1)  how many letters he received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Robin Cook: I received 21 letters from hon. and right hon. Members during this period.
	Of the total replied to, the information requested is as follows:
	(a) 18 (86 per cent.)
	(b) 1 (4 per cent.)
	(c) 2 (10 per cent.)

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Christopher Leslie: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament, received by agency chief executives and Departments and agencies, and performance in handling them, is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering the year 2000 was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W.
	Within the period 20 June and 20 July 2001 the Cabinet Office received 54 letters from hon. and right hon. Members. Out of these, 20 letters were transferred to other Government Departments or required no response. Of the remaining 34 letters left for the Cabinet Office to reply, (a) 27 (80 per cent.) were replied to within the 15 working day target, (b) a further five (94 per cent.) letters were replied to within 20 working days and (c) the remaining two (100 per cent.) letters were replied to within 30 working days. For (d) and (e) the Cabinet Office have a 100 per cent. success rate as all letters were replied to within 30 working days.
	Information on the volume of other correspondence, including letters from members of the public was published as part of the six service standards for central Government. The report, covering the financial year 2000, is referred to in my answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Croydon, Central (Geraint Davies) on 19 July 2001, Official Report, column 454–56W, and a copy is available in the Libraries of the House. These types of correspondence are not collected in the format requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many letters his Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Christopher Leslie: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and Departments and agencies, and performance in handling them, is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July the Cabinet Office received 54 letters from right hon. and hon. Members: to the Department replied to 80 per cent. within the 15 working day target.

Islamic Society of Britain

Julian Lewis: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what inquiries he made about the credentials, impartiality and political record of the Islamic Society of Britain before signing its Pledge to Muslims on religious tolerance.

Christopher Leslie: Officials made appropriate inquiries before the Government signed the pledge on religious tolerance.

Islamic Society of Britain

Julian Lewis: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister 
	(1)  if he will state what steps were taken by the Cabinet Secretary to check the credentials, impartiality and political record of the Islamic Society of Britain before signing its Pledge to Muslims on religious tolerance;
	(2)  if he will make a statement on the decision by the Cabinet Secretary to sign the Pledge to Muslims on religious tolerance organised by the Islamic Society of Britain.

Christopher Leslie: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 29 November 2001, Official Report, columns 1056–57W.

Unallocated Funds

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will estimate the total unallocated funds within his departmental expenditure limit (a) at the start of the financial year and (b) to date; and what was the month seven forecast on outturn underspend against his departmental expenditure limit in (i) real and (ii) percentage terms.

Christopher Leslie: The Cabinet Office departmental annual report for 2001 (Cm 5119) contains the Cabinet Office Departmental Unallocated Provision (DUP) set for the present financial year in Table 6 on page 87. Draw-down of the DUP was reported to Parliament in June 2001 in the Cabinet Office Summer Supplementary Estimate (Cm 5215).
	Outturn against the six month forecast for each Request for Resources will be published in the Winter Supplementary Estimates Summary Request for Supply as usual.

SCOTLAND

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many letters her Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Helen Liddell: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and Departments and agencies and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July, the volume of correspondence and percentage of replies within the set target was: nine letters and 66.67 per cent. on target.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many and what proportion of letters received by her Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Helen Liddell: The information is as follows:
	(a) 103 letters or 83.7 per cent. replied to in under 15 working days;
	(b) 112 letters or 91 per cent. replied to in under 20 working days;
	(c) 122 letters or 99.2 per cent. replied to in under 30 working days;
	(d) 122 letters or 99.2 per cent. replied to in under 40 working days; and
	(e) one letter or 0.8 per cent. replied to in over 40 working days.

Parliamentary Questions

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of parliamentary questions replied to by the Scotland Office were the subject of a holding answer in the last three Sessions of Parliament.

Helen Liddell: Approximately 25 per cent. in each of the Sessions December 2000-May 2001; November 1999-November 2000; and November 1998-November 1999.

West Coast Main Line

Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions she has had with Railtrack, since 5 October, concerning the timing of upgrades to the west coast main line.

Helen Liddell: I hope to meet with Railtrack senior management shortly to discuss a range of matters.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Genetically Modified Fish

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the views expressed by the Director General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, on 7 March 2000, in relation to genetic modification of aquatic species and the safety of genetically modified organisms.

Michael Meacher: The views of the Director General on genetically modified organisms are expressed in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation report on the State of the World's Fisheries published in 2000. The Director General's statement says:
	"We have no problem with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as long as they are proved to be safe to human beings and have no negative impact on the environment. That is a very clear position."
	In assessing this statement I agree that safety for human health and the environment is paramount. This is the rationale behind the European Regulatory regime, which prohibits releases of genetically modified organisms into the environment. Directive 90/220 requires that anyone wanting to release genetically modified organisms in any country in the EU must have prior approval subject to a detailed risk assessment.
	However this does not mean that there are no problems with the marketing and use of GMOs. In addition to the safety aspects, there are other issues of concern including public acceptance, ethics, liability and socio-economic impacts.
	In relation to genetic modification of aquatic species, such as fish, I refer to my recent statements on this topic on 19 November 2001, Official Report, column 77W and on 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 198W.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what grounds a local authority can refuse to take away used white goods where no other form of waste disposal exists.

Michael Meacher: Waste collection authorities can refuse to take away only those used white goods that are classified as 'commercial' waste. They may arrange to collect and dispose of such waste, if approached by commercial traders, but they are not obliged to. Waste collection authorities have a statutory duty to arrange for the collection of household waste. However, they are entitled to impose a charge for collection for certain items, set out in Schedule 2 to the Controlled Waste Regulations 1992.
	Waste disposal authorities have a statutory duty, under section 51(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, to provide reasonably accessible sites where householders can dispose of their waste free of charge but they may restrict the availability of specified sites to specified descriptions of waste.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations her Department has received from (a) retailers, (b) local authorities and (c) environmental groups regarding EC Regulation 2037/2000 and its implementation in the UK.

Michael Meacher: My Department has received a number of representations from retailers, local authorities and environmental groups concerning EC Regulation 2037/2000. More recently we have received representations regarding the collection and disposal of domestic fridges and freezers from retailers and local authorities, in particular through a number of stakeholder meetings, hosted by DEFRA and DTI.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps have been taken to ensure that there are alternative recycling routes for used fridges and freezers.

Michael Meacher: The Department, and the DTI, have hosted a number of stakeholder meetings to discuss the maintenance of existing systems for householders wishing to dispose of old fridges and freezers. Local authorities have statutory duties to accept and collect household waste, including bulky waste.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many used fridges and freezers have been taken back for recycling by UK retailers in 2001 prior to 17 November.

Michael Meacher: My Department does not hold this information. We would estimate that 1.3 million fridges and freezers have been taken back by UK retailers in 2001 prior to 17 November. However, we do not know what proportion was recycled.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans there are to build a recycling plant capable of removing CFCs from fridges and freezers under EC regulation 2037/2000.

Michael Meacher: I understand that a number of commercial companies intend to invest in plant in the UK.

White Goods Disposal

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress is being made in respect of (a) finalising measures to manage waste refrigeration equipment and (b) announcing assistance and advice for local councils consequent upon the impact of EC regulation 2037/2000.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 28 November 2001
	The Department has written to all local authorities in England informing them of the requirements regarding the recycling/disposal of fridges under the regulation. A further letter will be issued shortly to remind local authorities of their obligations to receive and collect waste refrigeration equipment from householders. Guidance on storage of waste refrigeration equipment has been issued in draft. An announcement, on financial assistance for local authorities, will be made shortly.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance has been issued to local authorities informing them of their obligation to meet EC regulation 2037/2000 when storing and recycling used goods.

Michael Meacher: The Department wrote to all local authorities in England informing them of the provisions of the regulation. A further letter will be issued to remind local authorities of their obligations to receive and collect waste refrigeration equipment from householders. Guidance on storage of waste refrigeration equipment has been issued in draft and will be finalised shortly.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures her Department is taking to ensure that the UK conforms to EC regulation 2037/2000.

Michael Meacher: My Department and the DTI have published three guidance booklets covering the requirements of EC regulation 2037/2000. More recently both Departments have hosted a number of stakeholder meetings to discuss the management of waste refrigeration units. My Department has been liaising with the Environment Agency to develop guidance on the standards for extracting CFCs form insulation foam in fridges, and on the storage of waste fridges and freezers, pending treatment. Draft guidance on these issues has been issued and will be finalised shortly. A statutory instrument to assign regulatory functions and to set out offences and penalties has been drafted and is expected to come into force in the new year.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance she has issued on the safe disposal of goods containing CFCs as required by EC regulation 2037/2000.

Michael Meacher: My Department has already issued draft guidance on the extraction of CFCs from fridges and freezers, and draft guidance on the storage of waste refrigeration equipment, prior to CFC extraction. These will be issued in final form shortly. Information for householders on safe disposal of fridges and freezers will also be issued.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions her Department has had with European recycling plants in preparation for the implementation of EC regulation 2037/2000 on 1 January 2002.

Michael Meacher: Officials from the Department have had a number of meetings with representatives from a recycling company in Germany. Representatives of the German industry more recently attended the stakeholder meetings hosted by DEFRA and have been consulted on draft guidance and standards for CFC removal.

White Goods Disposal

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what advice she has issued to local authorities on the maximum charges that can be levied on consumers for collecting bulky appliances from private residences.

Michael Meacher: No advice has been issued to waste collection authorities on the maximum charges that can be levied on consumers for the collection of bulky appliances from private residences. Charges are to be set to recover a local authority's costs but not to make a profit and are a matter for the authority concerned.

White Goods Disposal

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding is being made available for local authorities to re-process end-of-life refrigerators under the Draft Environmental Protection (Control of Ozone Depleting Substances) Regulations 2001.

Michael Meacher: An announcement on financial assistance for local authorities will be made shortly.

White Goods Disposal

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the storage facilities that local authorities, as waste disposal authorities, will need in order to re-process end-of-life refrigerators under the Draft Environmental Protection (Control of Ozone Depleting Substances) Regulations 2001.

Michael Meacher: Local authorities will need to store waste refrigeration units until suitable processing facilities come on-line. The number that will require storage prior to recycling is dependent on the construction of suitable facilities for the recovery of ozone depleting substances. Some of these could be operational as early as spring 2002. Guidance on the storage of waste refrigeration units has been issued in draft and will be finalised shortly.

Critical Sewers

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance she gives to water companies on the expected asset life of critical sewers; and what action she will take to ensure that critical sewers are replaced before they fail completely.

Michael Meacher: In 1998 in "Raising the Quality" the then Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions gave guidance that water and sewerage companies should maintain their assets in a way which will deliver a high standard of serviceability to customers and the environment. Ofwat has identified this as an area for companies to include in their draft business plans for the 2004 periodic review of prices. The water industry, Ofwat and the Environment Agency are working together on the assessment of future capital maintenance needs, for the review. Asset lives are a factor in this.

Nuclear Risk Assessment (France)

Desmond Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the dangers of a civil emergency arising out of nuclear contamination consequent upon a nuclear accident in France; and if she will make a statement.

Michael Meacher: No specific assessment of the risk of nuclear contamination as a result of an accident in France has been made. However, the UK has arrangements in place for co-ordinating the response to any overseas nuclear accident that may occur. These arrangements include a bilateral agreement with France and were fully tested in May 2001 as part of a joint international exercise based upon a nuclear accident at Gravelines nuclear power station, situated on the French coast. Further tests and exercises are conducted on a regular basis throughout the year to consider various nuclear accident conditions.

Energy Efficiency

Linda Gilroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to her answer of 26 October 2001, Official Report, column 409W, on energy efficiency, 
	(1)  what analysis of overall percentage improvements in domestic energy efficiency is required before figures for those overall percentage improvements can be published; and when she intends to publish the figures;
	(2)  what the closing date was for the energy conservation authorities to report their energy efficiency improvements to 31 March.

Michael Meacher: Energy conservation authorities were asked to submit their fifth annual progress reports to 31 March 2001 to their region's Government office, by 31 August this year. While many met the deadline, a large number did not.
	Before publishing the overall reported percentage improvement, we check that each report has been completed fully and accurately, going back to the authority with questions if necessary. Until we have done this for all authorities—around 350—and provided written feedback to each on this year's performance, we are not in a position to publish the reported percentage improvement.
	We have nearly completed our analysis and expect to publish this information early next year.

Energy Efficiency

Robert Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what proportion of her Department's budget is spent on promoting energy saving.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 27 November 2001
	The Department is responsible for energy efficiency. The latest complete figures available relate to the predecessor Department (DETR) in the financial year 2000–01. The funding made available to support and promote energy efficiency in 2000–01 totalled about £163.5 million, 6 per cent. of that Department's programme expenditure.
	The major elements of expenditure were on the energy efficiency best practice programme, support for the Energy Saving Trust and the home energy efficiency scheme.
	DEFRA funding in this financial year for energy efficiency is likely to be in the region of £220 million. This includes £50 million for the work of the Carbon Trust.

Packaging

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made in encouraging companies to reduce packaging.

Michael Meacher: The EC Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste—94/62/EC—was implemented in Great Britain by the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 (as amended).
	The regulations require businesses who deal with packaging to recover and recycle specified tonnages of packaging waste, calculated by the amount of packaging handled by the business. Businesses can reduce their obligation by using less and reusing packaging whenever possible. By increasing the amount reused producers are able to reduce the tonnages of packaging waste they are required to recover and so lessen their costs of compliance.
	The recovery and recycling targets for 2001 under the packaging regulations are 56 per cent. for recovery and 18 per cent. for material-specific recycling of packaging waste. Data received to date suggest that, if businesses meet their obligations, these targets should be met.

Packaging

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the timetable to publish the implementation of European Commission packaging directives.

Michael Meacher: The EC Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste—94/62/EC—came into force in 1994. The Directive was implemented in Great Britain by the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997.
	We are currently awaiting a proposal from the European Commission for revised targets to be met in 2006.

Waterways

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will publish the report of the freight study group on the potential usage of the waterway system for the carriage of freight.

Michael Meacher: The report of the Freight Study Group is expected early in the new year.

Waterways

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what arrangements her Department has for co-ordinating policy relating to canals with the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions.

Michael Meacher: We recognise the need for close liaison between DEFRA and DTLR on issues of common interest relating to canals. As a consequence the Freight Study Group will report to both Departments, and respective Ministers received a joint briefing recently from the chairman of the Freight Study Group.

River Quality

Colin Breed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer of 23 November 2001, Official Report, column 517W, on river quality, what chemical levels of (a) biochemical oxygen demand and (b) concentrations of dissolved (i) oxygen and (ii) ammonia are deemed to be (A) good, (B) fair, (C) poor and (D) bad in the Environment Agency's general quality assessment scheme for rivers.

Michael Meacher: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The Environment Agency's General Quality Assessment (GQA) scheme assigns stretches of rivers and canals to one of six quality grades (ranging from A for water of very good quality to F for water which is of bad quality) based on the monitoring results for biochemical oxygen demand and concentrations of dissolved oxygen and ammonia. The overall grade is that of the poorest of the three determinants. The grade classes are expressed as percentiles as set out in the table.
	
		Standards for the chemical GQA
		
			 GQA grade Dissolved oxygen (% saturation) 10-percentile Biochemical oxygen demand (mg/l) 90-percentile Ammonia (mgN/l) 90-percentile 
		
		
			 A (very good) 80 2.5 0.25 
			 B (good) 70 4 0.6 
			 C (fairly good) 60 6 1.3 
			 D (fair) 50 8 2.5 
			 E (poor) 20 15 9.0 
			 F (bad) less than 20 — —

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what proportion of letters received by her Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Elliot Morley: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and departments and agencies and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001, the volume of correspondence and percentage of replies within the set target was:
	Letters received: 718
	8 per cent. received replies within 15 working days;
	7 per cent. received replies within 20 working days;
	13 per cent. received replies within 30 working days;
	3 per cent. received replies within 40 working days;
	17 per cent. received replies over 40 working days.
	The Department keeps a central log of ministerial cases only and so this figure does not include letters received in this period that were dealt with by officials.
	We are working hard to ensure the Department's record is improved and the targets met. The Department has suffered severe disruption due to allocating top priority to defeating the foot and mouth epidemic. I accept this is not an adequate excuse for not giving hon. Members good service and now that normality is returning to the Department one of our urgent priorities is to rectify any weakness in our service delivery.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many letters her Department received from hon. and right hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Elliot Morley: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and Departments and agencies and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001, the number of letters received was 718. The Department keeps a central log of ministerial cases only and so this figures does not include letters received in this period that was dealt with by officials.

Correspondence

Peter Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she will reply to the letter of 12 September from the hon. Member for Hexham regarding assistance to Tyredale council to promote tourism.

Alun Michael: A response to the hon. Member's letter of 12 September has been sent today.

Correspondence

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the efficiency and promptness of her Department's staff in responding to correspondence received from hon. Members; and if she will make a statement.

Elliot Morley: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State wrote to all Members on 14 November setting out her assessment of the current problems faced by the correspondence section. The Department suffered severe disruption due to allocating top priority to defeating the foot and mouth epidemic. On top of this the sheer volume of correspondence received since the creation of DEFRA has had a severe impact on the section. I accept this is not an adequate excuse for not giving hon. Members good service, and now that normality is returning to the Department one of our urgent priorities is to rectify any weakness in our service delivery.
	The size of the section has increased threefold and the management strengthened; our IT systems are in the process of being improved, and new guidance and training is being rolled out throughout the Department. We hope that this will bear fruit in the very near future.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, if she will make a statement on clarifying guidance on best and most versatile land.

Alun Michael: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Housing, Planning and Construction on 21 March 2001, Official Report, columns 253–55W. This included an amendment to guidance in Planning Policy Guidance note 7 (PPG7), "The Countryside—Environmental Quality and Economic and Social Development", on best and most versatile agricultural land. Decisions about the development or protection of such land are for local planning authorities to take in accordance with that guidance. The guidance is on DTLR's website at www.planning.dtlr.gov.uk/ policy.htm.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, what proportion has been allocated and which organisations have received funding from the community service grants schemes in 2001–02.

Alun Michael: The Countryside Agency has allocated £1.5 million for expenditure on Community Service grants for this financial year.
	I have today deposited in the Library of the House a list of organisations that have received funding under the scheme.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, if she will outline the work done to date on the Countryside Agency's policy-maker's checklist and the extent of consultation during this process.

Alun Michael: The Policy Makers' Rural Proofing Checklist was published by the Countryside Agency on 24 April 2001. It followed consultation by the Countryside Agency with Government Departments and a number of other interested organisations, including the Local Government Association, the Country Land and Business Association and the Council for Protection of Rural England. The Checklist is available on the Countryside Agency's website at: www.countryside.gov.uk

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, how many communities have received support from the parish plans fund in 2001–02; and what amount they have received.

Alun Michael: To date 243 parish and town councils have registered an interest to produce a plan. 72 have been made a formal offer of grant and 44 parishes have received funding. A list of those parishes has been deposited in the Library of the House today.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew), 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, when the consultation paper on quality parish and town councils will be published.

Alun Michael: The consultation paper on quality town and parish councils was published on 7 November 2001. Copies of the consultation paper were placed in the Vote Office and I wrote to each Member of Parliament enclosing a copy of the consultation paper.

Rural White Paper

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to her answer to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew) of 27 November 2001, Official Report, columns 859–60W, on the rural White Paper, which market towns have received funding from the regeneration programme in 2001–02.

Alun Michael: Regional development agencies and their partners have agreed 112 towns for inclusion in the market towns initiative and most of these will have received some degree of support in 2001–02 depending on the stage they have reached in the consultation, planning and implementation process. The agreed list of 112 market towns has been deposited in the Library of the House today.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Asylum Seekers

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many asylum applications have been granted in each of the past two years in Northern Ireland; and how many applications await adjudication;
	(2)  how many asylum seekers have sought refuge in Northern Ireland in the last two years broken down by (a) gender, (b) adult/child status, (c) country of origin and (d) country from which they entered the UK.

Angela Eagle: Information on asylum applications and decisions in Northern Ireland is unavailable. Asylum applications data are not available at regional level except by port of application. Corresponding information on initial decisions relating to regional applications is also unavailable. The requested information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records.

Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill

Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will estimate the number of suspected terrorists who he expects to be detained under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill; and if he will make a statement.

David Blunkett: It would not be right for me to provide estimates at this stage but as the Prime Minister stated during oral questions on 14 November 2001, Official Report, column 854, our assessment is that the power will be required
	"only in a small number of cases".

Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library copies of legal advice, received by his Department, which relates to the obligation to respect private lives of individuals and the provisions specified in clauses 17 to 19 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Bill.

David Blunkett: No. Such advice falls within the category described in Part II, section 4(d) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information and will not be disclosed.

Suspicious Financial Transactions

Jenny Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many referrals relating to suspicious financial transactions have been referred to NCIS in each of the last three years; and how many prosecutions have resulted.

David Blunkett: holding answer 27 November 2001
	I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Truro and St. Austell (Matthew Taylor) on 23 October 2001, Official Report, column 203W.

Public Service Agreements

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on progress towards the public service agreement target for increasing the numbers of asylum decisions.

Angela Eagle: Increasing the number of asylum decisions was a public service agreement (PSA) target in the years 1999–2000 and 2000–01 but is not a PSA target in 2001–02. Outturn in 2000–01 was 132,840 against a target in the range 130,000 to 150,000.

Correspondence

Derek Conway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will instruct the Integrated Casework Directorate of the Immigration and Nationality Department to acknowledge the letters from the hon. Member for Old Bexley and Sidcup dated 13 August, 2 October and 26 October concerning Yuliya Smirnova, his reference S.1042831.

Angela Eagle: My officials wrote to the hon. Member on 22 November. I am sorry for the delay in replying. The Integrated Casework Directorate (ICD) stopped automatically sending acknowledgements of receipt of Members' representations addressed to the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) Board about 12 months ago. However, it is ICD's policy to acknowledge the receipt of applications and other casework-related correspondence where an acknowledgement is requested.

Muslim Fundamentalism

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the level of support for Muslim fundamentalism within the United Kingdom.

Angela Eagle: The total Muslim population in the United Kingdom is estimated to be between one and one and a half million. The number of people supporting what might be described as a "Muslim fundamentalist" view is impossible to assess, as it will depend on precisely how the term is interpreted. But support within the Muslim community for what might be regarded as extreme Islamist views is commonly judged to be small.

Muslim Fundamentalism

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment his Department has made of the continuing threat of Muslim fundamentalist terrorism in Britain after the destruction of the bin Laden organisation in Afghanistan.

David Blunkett: There have been a number of public threats made by bin Laden and his supporters against Western interests since 11 September.
	While we do not comment on intelligence, we believe the overall level of threat to the United Kingdom has remained at the heightened level identified immediately post 11 September. We believe that attacks against the United States remain bin Laden's priority. We do of course keep these issues under review.

European Arrest Warrant

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the Government's policy on protection of the principle of speciality in the Council Framework Decision on the European arrest warrant; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The United Kingdom (UK) does not intend, generally, to apply the dual criminality test to requests made to the UK authorities under the provisions of a European arrest warrant, and therefore would not, generally, expect to apply the rule of specialty in a case where a person is surrendered by the UK to another European Union member state.

European Arrest Warrant

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if it is his intention to apply the dual criminality test to offences listed under Article 2.4 in the Belgian Presidency's draft text of the Framework Decision on a European arrest warrant; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: Draft Article 2.4 of the Framework Decision allows the executing member state to decide whether to apply the dual criminality test, and this point will be finalised in the legislation necessary to implement the Framework Decision.
	The Government will reflect on this, in particular, whether it should retain the dual criminality test for abortion and euthanasia.

European Arrest Warrant

Oliver Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to include in the Framework Decision on the European arrest warrant power for a person who is due to be extradited to oppose their extradition on the grounds that their human rights under the ECHR would not be protected by the requesting country; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Ainsworth: The Framework Decision is intended to create a system enabling faster procedures for surrender of a fugitive as between European Union member states. Protection for the individual is provided in the domestic incorporation of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in the issuing state's criminal justice system, rather than before courts in the United Kingdom (UK). This is the principle of mutual recognition on the basis of which we would similarly expect our EU partners to return those we want to bring to our courts to stand trial.
	The question of compatibility with ECHR rights will be addressed again by the Government as part of the legislative process to implement the Framework Decision. It is conceivable that there may be a wholly exceptional case in which the UK courts may judge that there is a risk of treatment, on return of a fugitive to an EU member state, that is incompatible with the ECHR. Under those circumstances, the District Judge could refuse to execute a request for a European arrest warrant.

Kainos Wings

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance he has given the Prison Service regarding the closure of Kainos wings; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: None. The closure of the Kainos wings is properly within the discretion of the Prison Service Management Board.

Sense in Sentencing

Debra Shipley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many responses his Department has received following its consultation, Sense in Sentencing; and if he will list those who have responded.

Beverley Hughes: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Home Department, on 21 November 2001, Official Report, column 355W, which gave details of the level of response to the consultation on the Halliday report, 'Making Punishments Work'. Those who have responded will be listed in the summary of responses to be published at the end of January 2002.

Young Offenders Institutions

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the number of (a) mentally and (b) personality disordered prisoners now held in young offenders institutions.

Beverley Hughes: The table shows the principal findings for young people aged 16 to 20 in a survey of the prevalence of mental ill health in the prison population of England and Wales carried out in 1997 by the Office for National Statistics. The report of this survey, 'Psychiatric Morbidity among Prisoners' was published in 1998. A second report, 'Psychiatric Morbidity among Young Offenders in England and Wales', which contains further analysis of the data from the survey, was published in 2000.
	
		Percentage 
		
			  Remanded young men Sentenced young men Sentenced young women 
		
		
			 Functional psychosis in the past year(27) 8 10 (28)9 
			 Neurotic disorder in past week(29) 52 41 67 
			 Hazardous drinking in year before imprisonment 62 70 51 
			 Drug dependence in year before imprisonment 57 52 58 
			 Personality disorder(27) 84 88 (28)84 
		
	
	(27) From clinical interview
	(28) Probable diagnosis identified during lay interview
	(29) From lay interview

Immigration Hotline

Ian Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will improve the quality of service of the hon. Members' hotline for immigration matters.

Angela Eagle: The hotline was set up to deal with representations in general non-asylum cases which involve urgent or compelling compassionate circumstances. It currently deals with about 500 calls a week.
	The number of operators has recently been increased to 10 to offer a rapid response to hon. Members.

Drug Treatment and Testing Orders

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the cost to public funds in (a) 2000–01 and (b) 2001–02 of drug treatment and testing orders.

Bob Ainsworth: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on 28 November 2001, Official Report, column 956W.

Terrorism Act

Kevin McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons have been arrested under the Terrorism Act 2000 since its enactment in connection with (a) Northern Ireland-related terrorism and (b) international terrorism; how many of each have been subject to extended detention; on how many occasions an extension order was refused; and how many individuals in each category have been (i) charged under the Act, (ii) charged with other offences and (iii) subject to other procedures.

David Blunkett: The Terrorism Act 2000 came into force on 19 February 2001. I refer my hon. Friend to the following table.
	
		
			  Great Britain Northern Ireland 
		
		
			  S41 arrests/detentions 
			 Irish terrorism 14 93 
			 International terrorism 71 0 
			  
			 Total 85 93 
			
			  Extensions of detention 
			 Irish-related cases 11 8 
			 International related cases 11 0 
			 Applications refused 0 1 
			
			  Charges 
			 Terrorist related offences 15 11 
			 Other offences 12 17 
			 Immigration procedures 13 0

Dual Nationals

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take powers to collect statistics relating to the number of UK citizens with dual nationality with (a) Pakistan, (b) Bangladesh and (c) India.

Angela Eagle: Information that is currently collected relates to the number of persons granted British citizenship; the number of persons who were granted British citizenship in the United Kingdom in 2000 whose previous nationality was Pakistani, Bangladeshi or Indian is given in the table.
	
		
			  Previous nationality(30) Grants of British citizenship in 2000 
		
		
			 Pakistani 8,631 
			 Bangladeshi 5,380 
			 Indian 8,135 
		
	
	(30) Nationality possessed (or main nationality in cases of dual nationality) immediately before acquiring British citizenship
	It would not be possible or viable for the Home Office to collect information on the number of United Kingdom citizens with dual nationality as part of the process of applying for citizenship, since it would not be possible to determine the number of persons who renounced or retained their previous nationality.
	At present there are no plans to collect the information requested.

Passports

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what additional steps he is taking to make UK passports more difficult to (a) forge and (b) alter; and if he will make a statement.

Angela Eagle: The Government take very seriously the security and integrity of the United Kingdom passport. The United Kingdom Passport Service works very closely with the Immigration Service and other agencies to monitor the incidence of attempted forgery and manipulation of United Kingdom passports.
	The new digital British passport which the United Kingdom Passport Service has been using since October 1998 contains advanced security features to prevent forgery and alteration. These include a digital image of the holder's portrait and signature on the personal identification page of the passport which has been moved from the back cover to the last page of the passport. Both of these changes are designed to increase protection against portrait substitution.
	The personal identification page is also protected by a clear plastic laminate which incorporates a holographic device, and a series of laser perforations. In seeking to fully protect the passport special attention has also been paid to the component materials, and special printing techniques have been applied to the page designs.
	The design of the passport and the special security features incorporated within that design are kept under constant review.

Asian Community Functions

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the Asian community functions (a) he and (b) his Ministers have attended since 7 June.

David Blunkett: I attended the Asian community 30th Anniversary of Gujurat Samachar (Asian Voice) event on 31 October, which took place at the HoC. I also visited the Industry Road Mosque in Sheffield on 5 October. In addition I and several of my Ministers have had a large number of meetings with representatives of the Asian faiths as well as chairing meetings of the Race Relations Forum and speaking at the Ethnic Minority Network Conference organised by my Department. Ministers within my Department who have attended specific functions are as follows.
	10 October: Keith Bradley Asian Community Celebratory Event in Manchester
	29 September: John Denham Forum Against Islamophobia and Racism (FAIR) in London.

Heather Arnold

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will determine the parole application of Heather Arnold.

Beverley Hughes: The Parole Board has considered Mrs. Arnold's case and has made a recommendation. In line with normal practice, the Secretary of State will need to consider whether the Parole Board's recommendation may be accepted. The Secretary of State will make a decision on this case as soon as possible.

LORD CHANCELLOR

Community Legal Service

Paul Burstow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what (a) number and (b) percentage of advice providers listed in the Community Legal Service Directory have failed to make a positive commitment in writing to the aims and objectives of the Community Legal Service and to commit to making a Quality Mark application by the deadline of October; and if she will break these figures down (i) with reference to type of advice provided, (ii) with reference to client group and (iii) excluding legal firms.

Rosie Winterton: There are 9,878 organisations listed in the current Community Legal Service Directory (3rd Edition) and 7,112 (72 per cent.) have either made an application or have obtained the Quality Mark. Of the remaining 2,766 (28 per cent.), most have made a formal commitment in writing to apply for the Quality Mark by October 2001 but a small number have not applied. The organisations who failed to meet the October deadline may write to the Legal Services Commission setting out the reasons why they were unable to apply by that date and consideration will be given as to whether or not to accept the application.
	The Legal Services Commission is working with the London Learning and Skills Council to help support small and ethnic groups achieve the Quality Mark. A pilot is being run in two London boroughs and includes disability groups.

Community Legal Service

Paul Burstow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when she intends to remove advice providers without Quality Marks from the Community Legal Service directory; and what target she has set for the (a) number and (b) percentage of advice providers who should have a Quality Mark by this date.

Rosie Winterton: Those organisations which have not applied for a Quality Mark will not appear in the next edition of the Community Legal Service Directory, which is to be published in April 2002 (4th Edition). The deadline for applications was the end of October 2001. Organisations which have failed to meet this deadline may write to the Legal Services Commission setting out the reasons why they were unable to apply by that date and consideration will be given as to whether or not to accept the application. There are currently 502 Quality Mark holders at the General Help and General Help including casework levels, and over 1,700 organisations that have applied for the Quality Mark at General Help and General Help including casework level. The target for the number of advice providers to April 2002 is 1,250 at the General Help and General Help including casework levels.

Community Legal Service

Paul Burstow: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what estimate she has made of the (a) cost and (b) burden to an advice provider of applying for a Quality Mark; and what plans she has to offer small voluntary organisations help to meet these costs and burdens.

Rosie Winterton: The Legal Services Commission is working with the Learning and Skills Council to assess the resource implications for an advice provider in applying for a Quality Mark. This work is due to be completed in April 2002 and will feed into the Legal Services Commission's Quality Mark support strategy. The Legal Services Commission has commenced a number of initiatives that have the potential to provide information about the needs of advice providers and identify barriers to accessing the Quality Mark. A number of the projects are targeted at smaller organisations including Black Minority Ethnic groups and refugee support groups.

CAFCASS

Anthony Steen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department 
	(1)  what steps she has taken by the Children and Family Courts Advisory and Support Service to negotiate with NAGALRO and guardians ad litem following the judgment of Mr. Justice Scott Baker on 14 September;
	(2)  what plans she has to review the operations of CAFCASS following the judgment of Mr. Justice Scott Baker on 14 September; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  how many guardians ad litem in the UK have resigned since the establishment of CAFCASS; what impact this has had on waiting lists for children seeking (a) support, (b) welfare and (c) help; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: The Lord Chancellor issued a statutory direction to CAFCASS on 3 October instructing them to begin consultation about the issue of the self- employed guardians' contracts. This consultation is under way, and CAFCASS have written to all self-employed guardians. The discussions with NAGALRO will be chaired by an independent person, and the responses of the guardians to consultation will also be assessed independently.
	The information we have received from CAFCASS shows that of 716 self-employed guardians, 28 have withdrawn their services altogether, and a further 90 are not accepting new cases. 175 previously self-employed guardians have accepted contracts as employed guardians. The remainder of the guardians, employed or self- employed, continue to work normally, as do the other employees of CAFCASS. In addition CAFCASS has advertised for and identified 197 people eligible for appointment as guardians.
	At the week ending 16 November, guardians were working on 11,930 cases nationally. A further 282 cases were allocated that week. The number of unallocated cases was 177. In the hon. Member's South West Region there were 848 active cases. A further 26 cases were allocated that week and six cases awaited allocation.
	CAFCASS is subject to independent inspection by HM Magistrates' Court Service Inspectorate. The Inspectorate will complete its first inspection next year. Its preliminary view, based on the initial visits it has carried out so far, is that:
	"CAFCASS . . . has generally continued to deliver a service to children, families and courts to at least the same quantity and quality standards as in the previous services prior to CAFCASS being established in April 2001. In addition, there has been a significant investment in IT that is beginning to pay dividends".
	The Lord Chancellor and I are monitoring the situation closely. I am having weekly meetings with the Chairman of CAFCASS, and am also receiving weekly reports from him. We value extremely highly the work of all the guardians and other staff of CAFCASS, whether they are employed or self-employed, and I hope that all sides can now move on to develop the child-focused service that we all want to see.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many letters her Department received from right hon. and hon. Members between 20 June and 20 July.

Rosie Winterton: Information on the volume of correspondence from Members of Parliament received by ministerial agency chief executives, and Departments and agencies and performance in handling them is published annually by the Cabinet Office. The most recent report, covering 2000, was announced by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 6 April 2001, Official Report, column 325W. Between 20 June and 20 July 2001, 149 letters were received directly by the Lord Chancellor's Department; however, 27 of these letters were transferred to other Government Departments, and 19 were transferred to agencies of the Lord Chancellor's Department. Of the 103 letters dealt with by the Lord Chancellor's Department 65 per cent. were replied to within the 20 day departmental target.

Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many and what proportion of letters received by his Department between 20 June and 20 July were replied to (a) in under 15, (b) in under 20, (c) in under 30, (d) in under 40 and (e) in over 40 working days.

Michael Wills: For general correspondence received at LCDHQ 320 letters were received within the period. 282 (88.1 per cent.) were responded to in under 15 days, 303 (94.7 per cent.) were responded to in under 20 days, 317 (99.1 per cent.) were responded to in under 30 days, 319 (99.7 per cent.) were responded to in under 40 days, one (0.3 per cent.) responded to in over 40 days.
	For the Court Service, 565 letters were received within the period. 542 (97.4 per cent.) were responded to in under 15 days, 563 (99.11 per cent.) were responded to in under 20 days, 565 (100 per cent.) were responded to in under 30 days, nil under 40 days, nil over 40 days.
	For the Public Guardianship Office, 6,103 letters were received in June. 5,686 (93.2 per cent.) were responded to in under 15 working days. In July 5,063 letters were received, (93.4 per cent.) were responded to under 15 working days.
	Further information about PGO response times is not available.

Ministerial Visits (North-East)

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many times since November 2000 Ministers from the Lord Chancellor's Department have visited (a) the Teesside area and (b) Middlesbrough, South and Cleveland, East constituency to meet locally based businesses.

Rosie Winterton: Since November 2000, Ministers from the Lord Chancellor's Department have not met any locally based businesses from either (a) the Teesside area or (b) Middlesbrough, South and Cleveland, East constituency.

Parliamentary Ombudsman

Christopher Chope: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, pursuant to her answer of 28 November 2001, Offical Report, column 1005W on the Parliamentary Ombudsman, what the circumstances were of the cases which gave rise to (a) a period of 91 working days and (b) a period of 55 days being taken by the Court Service to respond.

Rosie Winterton: The information given was in calendar days rather than working days as had been requested. Those cases were dealt within 64 and 38 working days. I attach a copy of the amended statistical table. (a) The case of Lavender was sent to the Court Service on 7 August. The PCA asked for comments by 17 September. A reply was sent to the PCA on 6 November. There was a delay of 34 working days. The delay was due to the file being mislaid. The PCA was kept informed of the progress in locating the file at all times. (b) The case of Glasser was sent to the Court Service on 6 July. The PCA asked for comments by 23 August. A reply was sent to the PCA on 5 September. There was a delay of eight working days. A meeting has been arranged between the Court Service and the PCA to address the problems that occurred in these matters and to avoid any future difficulties.
	
		Formal notices issued by Parliamentary Ombudsman: 1 April to 31 October 2001
		
			  Department  Number received  Number responded to Working days to respond to each notice 
		
		
			 Lord Chancellor's Department(31) 2 2 16, 17 
			 Court Service 10 10 8, 9, 24, 12, 17, 17, 24, 33, 38, 64 
			 Public Guardianship Office 2 1 26 
			 HM Land Registry 1 1 19 
			 Northern Ireland Court Service 0 0 — 
			 Public Record Office 0 0 — 
		
	
	(31) Letter of 27 February 2001 not received until 30 April 2001

Parking (Royal Family)

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what special arrangements (a) the Royal family and (b) spouses of the Royal family have for parking in London when not on official business.

Michael Wills: Subject to security considerations, there are no special parking arrangements for members of the Royal family, including spouses, when not on official business.

Referral Fees

John Burnett: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what assessment he has made of the proposal by the Law Society to enable solicitors to pay referral fees.

Michael Wills: While the Lord Chancellor has noted the consultation document "Solicitors Introduction and Referral Code" issued by the Law Society in January 2001, he has yet to see any firm proposals from the Law Society. The Lord Chancellor will consult the designated judges on any application that requires his approval under the provisions of Schedule 4 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990. He will also consider whether to consult with the Legal Services Consultative Panel and the Director General of Fair Trading.

Employment Tribunals (North Wales)

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans he has to provide a permanent location for Employment Tribunals in North Wales.

Alan Johnson: I have been asked to reply.
	The Employment Tribunals Service is actively seeking to establish a permanent location for hearings in North Wales as soon as possible.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Incapacity Benefit

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the proportion of total claims for incapacity benefit paid in respect of the main relevant medical conditions.

Malcolm Wicks: holding answer 31 October 2001
	The information requested has been placed in the Library.

Ageism

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on recent measures he has introduced to tackle age discrimination;
	(2)  what measures there are to get more people in their 50s and 60s into work.

Nick Brown: This Government recognise the importance of tackling age discrimination in the workplace. We have already provided voluntary guidance to help employers. By 2006, we will legislate against age discrimination in the workplace. This timescale will allow us to consult extensively with employers, individuals, and expert groups on age positive practices, and on all aspects of the legislation.
	We are committed to employment opportunity for all, regardless of age. For those over 50, there is a comprehensive range of back to work programmes, including new deal 50 plus, new deal 25 plus and the new deal for disabled people. Government support has ensured that the employment rate for the over 50s has increased each year for the last four years. Through new deal 50 plus alone, which was launched in April 2000, more than 51,000 people have been helped into work.
	The Department also leads with its AgePositive campaign, which is vigorously promoting the business benefits of employing an age diverse workforce. The campaign focuses on the Code of Practice on Age Diversity in Employment and a wide range of research and promotional activities. On 3 December we launched a new AgePositive website and a range of new research studies.

Benefits (Birmingham, Northfield)

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  how many people in Birmingham, Northfield claim (a) both disability living allowance and income support and (b) a disability premium as part of their income support applicable amount;
	(2)  how many over 60-year-olds in Birmingham, Northfield have the (a) disability and (b) higher pensioner premium added to their income support applicable amount;
	(3)  how many single parent families in Birmingham, Northfield are in receipt of (a) working families tax credit and (b) income support.

Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
	
		Benefit recipients in Birmingham, Northfield constituency
		
			  Thousand 
		
		
			 Income support (IS) recipients receiving disability living allowance 1.1 
			 IS recipients with a disability premium 2.8 
			 Pensioners receiving MIG with a disability premium 0.8 
			 Pensioners receiving MIG with a higher pensioner premium 1.9 
			 Lone parents receiving IS 1.8 
			 Lone parents receiving working families tax credit 1.3 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. All figures are for May 2001.
	2. Figures are based on 5 per cent. sample data and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling error.
	3. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	4. IS recipients with DLA are cases where DLA is paid to the benefit recipient. Cases where DLA is paid to the partner only are not included.
	5. Disability premiums are classed as severe disability premium, disability premium and enhanced disability premium.
	6. Pensioners are cases where the benefit recipient and/or partner are aged 60 or over.
	7. IS lone parents are single parents aged under 60 who do not receive a disability premium.
	Sources:
	Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiry August 2001.
	Working Families' Tax Credit Statistics Quarterly Enquiry May 2001.

Benefits (Birmingham, Northfield)

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many benefit claimants in Birmingham, Northfield are not in receipt of income support but are in receipt of (a) housing benefit and (b) council tax benefit.

Malcolm Wicks: The available information is in the table.
	
		Total housing benefit and council tax benefit case load in the Birmingham city council area where the recipient is not in receipt of income support or jobseeker's allowance(32)
		
			 Local authority Number of cases 
		
		
			 Birmingham  
			 Total housing benefit cases not in receipt of income support/jobseeker's allowance(32) 23,390 
			 Total council tax benefit cases not in receipt of income support/jobseeker's allowance(32) 34,400 
		
	
	(32) Income based
	Notes:
	1. The data refer to benefit claims, which may be a single person or a couple
	2. The figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 cases
	3. The table also includes people not receiving jobseeker's allowance (income based), due to insufficient data we are unable to exclude these cases
	4. Figures are only available by local authority area
	Source:
	Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. case load stock-count taken in May 2001

Benefits (Birmingham, Northfield)

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Birmingham, Northfield claim the minimum income guarantee.

Ian McCartney: As at May 2001 there were 3,000 minimum income guarantee recipients in the Birmingham, Northfield constituency.

Benefits (Birmingham, Northfield)

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Birmingham, Northfield have children in receipt of free school meals.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	Information on free school meals is not available in the form requested.
	The number of children known to be eligible for free school meals in maintained nursery, maintained primary, maintained secondary and special schools in the parliamentary constituency of Birmingham, Northfield as at January 2000 was 4,305.

War Pensions Agency

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional cost savings measures referred to on page 75 of the 2001 departmental report were taken to enable the War Pensions Agency to operate within its running cost allocation in 2000–01.

Lewis Moonie: I have been asked to reply.
	During 2000–01, the War Pensions Agency adopted a carefully controlled expenditure regime ensuring that proper financial procedures were embedded within the Agency. Monthly reviews of expenditure were undertaken and closely scrutinised to enable the agency to operate within the running cost allocation for 2000–01.
	The 2000–01 programme of work was regularly reviewed and the impacts of any proposed changes to the agency's capacity to deliver the programme were considered. Links were also ensured between the agency's work programme, investment appraisal procedures and appropriate approval routes for change initiatives.

Benefit Reductions

David Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what reductions are applied to a liable person's liability to pay (a) rent and (b) council tax during a period of in-patient hospital treatment.

Sally Keeble: I have been asked to reply.
	Liability to pay rent would not normally be reduced during a period of in-patient hospital treatment, unless the landlord specifically agreed to this. Nor does any general reduction from council tax apply in such circumstances. However, if a person moves permanently into a hospital, his or her previous home will be exempt from council tax if it is unoccupied.

HEALTH

Health Authority Modernisation

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place a copy of each health authority's local modernisation review for 2002–03 in the Library as soon as they are received.

John Hutton: holding answer 14 November 2001
	The purpose of the local modernisation reviews (LMR) is to engage local partners, frontline staff, and patients' representatives in reviewing what needs to be done to deliver national health service priorities locally. The outputs from this year's LMR will inform the annual planning round and the development of the 2002–03 "Service and Financial Frameworks" (SaFFs). These frameworks set out the levels of NHS activity and resources allocated to achieve the local health system's contribution to national targets for the coming year. NHS organisations will sign accountability agreements in relation to delivering their contribution to the 2002–03 SaFF.
	LMRs are local planning exercises. The Department itself does not receive copies of these documents. We are unable, therefore, to place copies of LMRs in the Library. External scrutiny to the LMR process has been secured through local peer review and involvement by lay members of the local modernisation boards.

Hearing Aids

David Heath: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  from what date East Somerset health trust will be included in the modernising NHS hearing aid services project;
	(2)  which NHS health trusts will be part of the modernising NHS hearing aid services project for 2002–03.

Jacqui Smith: There are currently 20 national health service trusts taking part in the modernising NHS hearing aid services project, as listed in the table.
	It is too early to say when a specific trust might be involved in the project. Evaluation of the project by the Institute of Hearing Research is on-going. Subject to favourable evaluation, the Department, on advice from the project's implementation team, will make decisions about how best to spread the modernised services. Trusts would be invited to be part of the project on the basis of geographical spread, preparedness to modernise, and the commitment of the local health community to the aims of the project.
	
		
			 NHS trust Start year 
		
		
			 Addenbrookes NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 James Paget Healthcare NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital 2000–01 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Leeds Teaching NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Trust 2001–02 
			 Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Morecambe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust 2001–02 
			 Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust (children) 2001–02 
			 Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust 2001–02 
			 East Berkshire Community Health NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Royal Berkshire and Battle Hospitals NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Queens Medical Centre University NHS Trust Nottingham 2000–01 
			 The Kings Mill Centre for Healthcare Services NHS Trust 2001–02 
			 Sheffield Children's Hospital NHS Trust (children) 2000–01 
			 University Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust 2000–01 
			 Royal Shrewsbury and Princess Royal Hospitals NHS Trust 2000–01

Religious Circumcision

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS trusts make provision for religious circumcision.

Jacqui Smith: In 1999–2000 205 national health service hospitals in England recorded a total of 21,763 inpatient episodes where the main operation was circumcision. It is not possible to determine whether the procedure was carried out for religious reasons.

Associate Specialists

Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to ensure that associate specialists in the UK obtain equal treatment to those from the EU (a) in gaining entry to the Specialist Register and (b) in the appointment of consultant posts.

John Hutton: Standards for entry to the specialist register in the United Kingdom are the same for all doctors working in the European Economic Area as all doctors have to have completed a period of training recognised by the competent authority. Appointment to consultant posts in the UK is governed by the National Health Service (Appointment of Consultants) Regulations 1996, which apply equally to all EEA doctors.

Statins

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on the prescribing of statins; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease, revised in the Chief Medical Officer's Update in February 2001, sets out the policy for the prescribing of statins. The first priority is to ensure that people with established CHD are treated with statins to lower their cholesterol level either below 5.0 mmol/l or to reduce total serum cholesterol by 20–25 per cent., whichever would result in the lowest level. (The equivalent figures for LDL cholesterol would be 3.0 mmol/l or by a 30 per cent. reduction, whichever results in the lowest level.) The next step is the treatment of those without diagnosed CHD but whose risk of a cardiac event is greater than 30 per cent. over 10 years.
	This is consistent with the guidance already issued to the national health service by the Standing Medical Advisory Committee and with the Joint British Society Guidelines published in the British Medical Journal.

Health Service Staff (Leicestershire)

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) doctors and (b) nurses were employed in the national health service in Leicestershire in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2001.

Jacqui Smith: The number of doctors and nurses employed in the area covered by Leicestershire health authority in 1997 and 2000 (the latest year available) are given in the table. Data relating to 2001 will not be available until February 2002.
	
		National health service hospital and community health services and general and personal medical services: All doctors and nursing staff within Leicestershire health authority area are as at 30 September each year
		
			   Headcount  
			  1997 2000 
		
		
			 All staff 9,540 9,930 
			 All practitioners (excluding GP retainers)(33),(34) 560 540 
			 of which:   
			 UPEs(35) 500 500 
			 HCHS medical and dental staff(36) 1,120 1,260 
			 Total nursing staff 7,870 8,140 
			 of which:   
			 Qualified staff 5,260 5,740 
			 Qualified (HCHS) nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff 4,950 5,420 
			 Practice nurses 300 330 
			 Unqualified (HCHS) nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff 2,610 2,400 
		
	
	(33) All practitioners (excluding GP retainers) include unrestricted principals and equivalents (UPEs), restricted principals, assistants, GP registrars, salaried doctors (Para. 52 SFA) and PMS others
	(34) As at 30 September 2000 there were eight GP retainers within Leicestershire HA
	(35) UPEs include GMS unrestricted principals, PMS contracted GPs and PMS salaried GPs
	(36) Excludes hospital medical practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are also GPs working part-time in hospitals
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10
	2. Due to rounding totals may not equal the sum of component parts
	3. Figures exclude learners and agency staff
	4. In 1997, Leicestershire HA comprised of the following organisations: Leicestershire HA, Leicester General Hospital NHS Trust, Leicester Royal Infirmary NHS Trust, Glenfield Hospital NHS Trust, Leicestershire Mental Health Service NHS Trust, Leicestershire Ambulance and Paramedics Services NHS Trust and Fosse Health, Leicestershire Community NHS Trust
	5. In 2000 following mergers, Leicestershire HA comprised of the following organisations: Leicestershire HA, Leicestershire and Rutland Healthcare NHS Trust and University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust
	6. Practitioner figures were collected as at 1 October in 1997
	Sources:
	Department of Health non-medical work force census
	Department of Health medical and dental work force census
	Department of Health general and personal medical services statistics

Nurses' Allowance

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the (a) purpose and (b) aims of the cost of living allowance for nurses;
	(2)  which counties in the (a) south west, (b) south east and (c) eastern parts of England benefit from the cost of living allowance for nurses;
	(3)  if accommodation and the cost of living for nurses in Essex is being considered as part of his active review of the cost of living for nurses' allowance; and if he will extend the scheme to Essex;
	(4)  if he will make a statement on the reason for the exclusion of Essex in the counties to receive the cost of living allowance for nurses;
	(5)  when his Department's review of the cost of living allowances for nurses in the south of England will be complete.

John Hutton: holding answer 20 November 2001
	Cost of living supplements for qualified nurses and some allied health professionals were introduced in April 2001 as part of a wide ranging strategy to address the low national health service participation rates of these particular staff groups and the associated recruitment and retention difficulties in parts of England.
	For 2001–02, eligible staff working in London and in the following health authority areas are entitled to these supplements:
	South west
	Avon HA
	Wiltshire HA
	South east
	Berkshire HA
	Buckinghamshire HA
	East Surrey HA
	North and Mid Hampshire HA
	Oxfordshire HA
	Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire HA (excluding staff working in the Isle of Wight)
	Southampton and South West Hampshire HA
	West Surrey HA
	West Sussex HA
	Eastern
	Bedfordshire HA
	Cambridgeshire HA
	East and North Hertfordshire HA
	West Hertfordshire HA.
	Geographic coverage has been determined by reference to the Market Forces Factor, which is an up to date and objective measure of external labour market pressures on NHS employers. The health authorities in Essex do not meet the current eligibility criteria.
	We have not yet finalised decisions on the geographic scope of cost of living supplements for 2002–03. These decisions will be informed by the latest market forces factor data.
	We intend to monitor the impact of cost of living supplements more fully before considering options for any significant changes to the structure or scope of the scheme. It is too early to judge the impact of these payments at present but we hope to be able to reach a more considered assessment during 2002–03. As part of this ongoing review, we shall take into account any alternative proposals put to us for assessing the geographic coverage of the scheme.

Blood (Cancer Patients)

Dai Havard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what specific blood substitute therapies will be made available for treating cancer patients with anaemia- related fatigue following the adoption of additional screening;
	(2)  if he will introduce into the NHS those (a) blood transfusion and (b) blood substitute regimes for cancer patients used in overseas hospitals treating NHS patients which are more effective and efficient than UK practices.

John Hutton: holding answer 20 November 2001
	There are a number of erthropietin drugs licensed to shorten the period of anaemia in patients receiving platinum-containing chemotherapy. These are available for clinicians to prescribe when it is clinically beneficial.
	The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) helps clarify, both for patients and professionals, which drugs are clinically effective and cost-effective. NICE helps the national health service to focus its increasing resources on those treatments that will best improve peoples' health. Criteria have been established by the Department, the National Assembly for Wales and NICE to help determine which interventions are referred to NICE. They have been applied consistently for all NICE guidance to date and are available on the NICE website.

Anti-TNF Drug Treatment

Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if NICE will issue interim guidance to health authorities on anti-TNF drug treatment for rheumatoid arthritis.

Jacqui Smith: No. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence is proceeding with its appraisal of anti-TNF drugs for rheumatoid arthritis and it is anticipated that guidance will be published in March 2002.

Head Injury Patients

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to commission further research on provision of services for patients with head injuries.

Jacqui Smith: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave him on 12 November 2001, Official Report, column 549W.

Acquired Brain Injury

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what joint working arrangements are in place with other Government Departments regarding the provision of rehabilitation services for people with acquired brain injury.

Jacqui Smith: Getting people back to functional independence following illness or injury is a high priority for the national health service. This year, the Department is planning job retention and rehabilitation pilots, together with the Department for Education and Skills and the Department for Work and Pensions. £12 million has been invested in the pilots which aim to test the relative effectiveness of different employment and health strategies in helping people with prolonged illness or disability, including head injury, remain in their jobs.

Acquired Brain Injury

Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to improve the provision of rehabilitation services for people with acquired brain injury.

Jacqui Smith: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave him on 7 November 2001, Official Report, column 282W.

Cancer

Adrian Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking to improve the five year survival rates for (a) lung, (b) breast and (c) prostate and (d) colon cancer sufferers in the Sandwell health authority.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 22 November 2001
	The NHS Cancer Plan published in September 2000 identifies two important areas where cancer prevention activity should be focused. Changes in lifestyle related to smoking and diet can significantly reduce chances of getting cancer. With this in mind the NHS Cancer Plan sets out a clear agenda for improving cancer prevention:
	In Sandwell, cancer networks have been putting together three year service delivery plans to specify how they are going to meet the range of targets outlined in the NHS Cancer Plan.
	Those plans include how they are going to improve overall survival rates including smoking cessation initiatives, extended cancer screening and extension of fruit pilots. The health authority is also currently achieving high standards for urgent referral of patients with suspected cancer. In addition there are a raft of plans in the pan-Birmingham network which are addressing survival rates for all cancers, in which Sandwell health authority is included.

Years of Life Lost

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to review the use of the Years of Life Lost formula for allocating health service resources; and if he will make a statement.

John Hutton: The Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation has reviewed the Years of Life Lost index and this will be reflected in 2002–03 health authority allocations which will be announced shortly.

MacFarlane Trust

Gary Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many HIV sufferers have received compensation under the MacFarlane Trust since its establishment.

Hazel Blears: Since its establishment, the MacFarlane Trust has made special payments to 1,240 registrants with haemophilia and HIV and 62 others, who are either infected partners or infected children.

Local Bodies

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list those local bodies which were set up under legislation which is the responsibility of his Department since May 1997.

John Hutton: 481 primary care groups were established as sub committees of health authorities in 1999. PCG, both individually or together with other PCGs, can become primary care trusts. The first 17 PCTs began operating on 1 April 2000. There are currently 164 PCTs in operation and more are being established to become operational on 1 April 2002. A full list of these organisations has been placed in the Library.

Nurses

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimates have been made of the number of NHS employed nurses who work as agency staff during their holidays to supplement their income in (a) England and (b) the Isle of Wight; and what steps are taken to ensure that leave is taken.

John Hutton: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Nurses

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average annual cost of an (a) A, (b) D and (c) F grade NHS employed nurse is; and what the equivalent cost of an agency nurse at each grade is.

John Hutton: Information about the estimated annual costs of an A, D and F grade nurse employed in the National Health Service is shown in the table.
	
		£ 
		
			  2001 average cost 
		
		
			 Grade A (37)15,500 
			 Grade D (37)22,300 
			 Grade F (37)28,300 
		
	
	(37) To the nearest £100
	Sources:
	Department of Health's August 2000 NHS staff earnings survey, pay Advance Letters and paybill figures.
	The equivalent cost of an agency nurse at each grade is not centrally available.

Primary Care Groups

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of establishing primary care groups has been.

John Hutton: The establishment of primary care groups was funded using moneys released by the abolition of general practitioner fundholding. The previous Government had set aside an annual budget of £180 million to run fundholding. We have used those moneys both to set up primary care groups and to improve services to patients. Approximately £150 million additional moneys was used following the establishment of primary care groups.

Waiting Lists

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the in-patient waiting list was, expressed per 1,000 of weighted population for the Isle of Wight in March (a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999, (d) 2000 and (e) 2001.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is in the table.
	
		
			 As at March Size of in-patient waiting list Weighted population In-patient waiting list per 1,000 head of weighted population 
		
		
			 1997 4,229 143,959 29.4 
			 1998 3,864 136,022 28.4 
			 1999 3,552 134,882 26.3 
			 2000 3,522 137,041 25.7 
			 2001 3,392 136,786 24.8 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. In April 2001, Isle of Wight health authority merged to form Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire HA.
	2. The data provided refers to the old HA.
	3. Population is weighted for age, additional need (over and above that accounted for by age) and variations in the unavoidable cost of providing health care (market forces factor etc.)
	4. Populations for 1997, 1998 and 1999 are not directly comparable to those for 2000 and 2001 as unified allocations covering hospital and community health services (HCHS), prescribing and GP infrastructure are included from 2000 onwards.
	Source:
	QF01 waiting times returns/FD Resource Allocation 2 population data

Social Services

Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will publish his final guidance for local authorities on charging for social services.

Jacqui Smith: We published final guidance for local councils on charging for non-residential social services on 23 November. The guidance is available on the Department's website at www.doh.gov/scg/ homecarecharges.

General Practitioners

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of general practitioner practices in the (a) Leigh constituency, (b) Wigan borough and (c) Greater Manchester are below minimum standards.

John Hutton: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The information requested is not available centrally. However, at the last inspection visit, all practices in the Wigan and Leigh areas met the minimum standards.

IT Expenditure

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer, of 20 November 2001, Official Report, column 243W, on expenditure on IT, if he will publish such information as he has on expenditure.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 26 November 2001
	The figures for information technology management are not separately collected across the Directorates. The figures for the Information Policy Unit from its establishment in January 1999 are: 1999–2000—£2.98 million; 2000–01—£2.91 million; 2001–02—£2.09 million. These resources are from The Departmental Vote.

Multiple Sclerosis

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on the use of interferon beta and glatiramer in the treatment of multiple sclerosis; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 26 November 2001
	We are currently holding discussions with the manufacturers to consider a range of options under which drugs for multiple sclerosis might be made available under the national health service. One option is a 'risk-sharing' scheme which will evaluate their clinical and cost effectiveness, and until these discussions are concluded we cannot provide the information requested.

Dentists

Jonathan Djanogly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the number of dentists providing NHS treatment in Huntingdon; and if he will make a statement.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 26 November 2001
	A monthly assessment of the number of national health service dentists in the Huntingdon area is made by Cambridgeshire health authority. This information is made available to members of the public on the NHS Direct website.
	In the Huntingdonshire Primary Care Trust area there are 56 general dental practitioners providing NHS treatment. Sixteen of these are currently accepting new NHS dental patients.
	In addition, a daily dental service is provided for people in the Huntingdon area who need urgent treatment and are not registered with a dentist.

Dentists

Paul Tyler: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the adult population in (a) England, (b) Cornwall and (c) the United Kingdom were registered with NHS dentists in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000 and (iv) 2000–01.

Hazel Blears: The percentage of adults registered with a general dental service (GDS) dentist per head of population is shown in the table for England, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly health authority and the United Kingdom for 30 September in each of the years 1997–98 to 2000–01.
	The registration rates for September 1997 are not comparable with the later figures as they reflect a 24 month registration period, the later figures reflect a 15 month registration period.
	The registration rates for 1999–2000 and 2000–01 are affected by the number of patients now seen in the Cornwall personal dental services (PDS) schemes. During 2000–01 some 13,000 individual adult patients were seen via these PDS schemes, which corresponds to about 3 per cent. of the local population.
	
		General dental service: Percentage of adult registrations(38) per population(39), 1997–98 to 2000–01
		
			 September each year England Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly HA United Kingdom 
		
		
			 1997–98(40) (40)51 (40)48 (40)51 
			 1998–99 44 39 44 
			 1999–2000 43 37 44 
			 2000–01 43 37 44 
		
	
	1. Based on the number of adult registrations at 30 September for each financial year.
	2. ONS mid year adult population estimates used to calculate percentage of adult patients registered.
	3. Registration rates reflect a 24 month registration period rather than 15 months which is the basis of the later figures.

Labels and Leaflets

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what recent representations he has received from the pharmaceutical industry about compliance with the Labels and Leaflets Directive (Directive 92/27/EEC);
	(2)  what steps his Department takes to ensure that patients receive the information required by the Labels and Leaflets Directive (Directive 92/27/EEC) when a prescription medicine is dispensed;
	(3)  if he will list the information that is required to be provided to a patient about a prescription medicine when it is dispensed and the form in which that information should be provided;
	(4)  what guidance (a) his Department and (b) its agencies have issued to pharmacists to ensure that they comply with the Labels and Leaflets Directive (Directive 92/27/EEC) when dispensing a prescription medicine;
	(5)  what steps he will take to ensure that patients receive the information that is required by the Labels and Leaflets Directive (92/27/EEC) when prescription medicines are dispensed.

Hazel Blears: The Directive was incorporated into United Kingdom law by the Medicines (Marketing Authorisations Etc) Regulations 1994. It is an offence for any person in the course of business to sell or supply a medicine to which the Directive relates without the approved leaflet and appropriate label. Neither the Department nor its agencies have issued guidance to pharmacists.
	The information required to be provided to a patient about a prescription medicine when it is dispensed, and the form in which the information should be provided, is set out in the Medicines for Human Use (Marketing Authorisations Etc) Regulations 1994 and Directive 92/27/EEC—copies of which are available in the Library.
	We receive representations about compliance with the Directive from time to time from the pharmaceutical industry and others.

Smear Tests

David Hinchliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average turnaround time is for cervical smear tests within the NHS in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 29 November 2001
	Guidance from the national health service cervical screening programme states that women should have to wait no longer than six weeks for the written results of their cervical smear test. Results are sent either by the health authority or by the general practitioner according to local practice. Two thirds of health authorities currently send the results directly.
	Information on waiting times for screening test results is only available for those areas where the result letters are sent to women by the health authorities. In 2000–01, 60 per cent. of women in these health authorities received their written cervical screening test result within six weeks. 91 per cent. received their written result within 10 weeks 1 . Where the six week target is not achieved, we look to the relevant health authority to address reasons for this.
	1 Statistical Bulletin: Cervical Screening Programme, England: 2000–01

Bed Blocking

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds were unavailable in the Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire Health Authority to incoming patients as a result of their occupation by (a) delayed discharge patients who were awaiting social services funding and (b) delayed discharge patients who had fully funded social service packages arranged, in each quarter in (i) 2000 and (ii) 2001.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The information requested is not available centrally.

Dentistry (Fareham)

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists accepted NHS patients in Fareham in (a) 1995, (b) 1996, (c) 1997, (d) 1998, (e) 1999 and (f) 2000.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The information requested is not available centrally.

Prescription Pricing Authority

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for each health authority area, what was the September forecast by the Prescription Pricing Authority, indicating projected overspending or underspending during the present financial year.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The table sets out the prescribing budgets notified to the Prescription Pricing Authority by each health authority. They are practice level prescribing budgets and do not include any contingency reserves held by the health authority.
	
		
			 Health authority  Practice budgets as notified to PPA (£) Forecast Outturn (£) Forecast Overspend (percentage) 
		
		
			 Bradford QDD 49,491,460 53,637,712 8.38 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees QDT 63,994,855 67,020,545 4.73 
			 County Durham QDE 70,200,309 72,227,760 2.89 
			 East Riding QDF 65,741,920 68,719,434 4.53 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside QDG 39,769,623 41,583,981 4.56 
			 Leeds QDH 82,995,925 88,023,114 6.06 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside QDJ 51,552,434 54,302,659 5.33 
			 North Cumbria QDK 36,045,994 38,620,593 7.14 
			 North Yorkshire QDR 75,304,849 79,101,136 5.04 
			 Northumberland QDM 35,127,268 36,691,539 4.45 
			 Sunderland QDN 33,763,329 35,766,265 5.93 
			 Tees QDP 65,515,468 68,419,994 4.43 
			 Wakefield QDQ 35,466,500 38,028,472 7.22 
			 Barnsley QCG 28,065,208 30,244,835 7.77 
			 Doncaster QCK 36,099,848 38,073,186 5.47 
			 Leicestershire QCL 93,929,875 98,508,149 4.87 
			 Lincolnshire QCM 74,145,519 81,394,561 9.78 
			 North Derbyshire QCH 37,487,465 40,913,705 9.14 
			 North Nottinghamshire QCN 42,114,993 45,242,065 7.43 
			 Nottingham QCP 60,499,404 65,661,240 8.53 
			 Rotherham QCQ 26,979,488 30,045,053 11.36 
			 Sheffield QCR 53,708,543 58,723,274 9.34 
			 South Humber QDL 34,371,750 36,546,887 6.33 
			 Southern Derbyshire QCJ 55,418,649 58,837,770 6.17 
			 Bedfordshire QA6 54,371,270 57,519,263 5.79 
			 Cambridge and Huntingdon QER 71,093,206 74,858,157 5.30 
			 Hertfordshire QEX 99,093,919 106,869,997 7.85 
			 Norfolk QET 88,487,524 93,431,112 5.59 
			 North Essex QAX 90,240,070 96,245,777 6.66 
			 South Essex QAY 69,799,277 75,654,699 8.39 
			 Suffolk QCF 72,658,297 78,804,162 8.46 
			 Barking and Havering QAP 38,981,289 40,330,199 3.46 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey QEW 78,202,699 81,639,119 4.39 
			 Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich QEY 71,043,576 73,959,182 4.10 
			 Brent and Harrow QAR 46,755,854 49,904,010 6.73 
			 Camden and Islington QAT 33,999,268 35,027,373 3.02 
			 Croydon QAD 28,546,850 29,999,322 5.09 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow QAV 62,062,477 64,367,616 3.71 
			 East London and City QAW 59,104,397 61,817,578 4.59 
			 Hillingdon QA2 23,197,100 23,594,295 1.71 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster QA3 29,092,369 30,390,325 4.46 
			 Kingston and Richmond QAG 30,014,716 30,449,072 1.45 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham QAH 67,128,321 70,605,392 5.18 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth QAJ 55,463,897 58,118,247 4.79 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest QA5 42,510,877 43,711,911 2.83 
			 Berkshire QA7 70,559,047 75,659,464 7.23 
			 Buckinghamshire QA8 62,211,041 66,528,772 6.94 
			 East Kent QAE 71,881,294 75,407,428 4.91 
			 East Surrey QAK 42,347,787 42,327,096 -0.05 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove QAM 86,909,580 92,331,262 6.24 
			 Isle of Wight and Portsmouth and South East Hants QEV 70,249,164 75,014,698 6.78 
			 North and Mid Hampshire QD1 47,210,615 51,029,798 8.09 
			 Northamptonshire QCC 55,279,066 57,467,162 3.96 
			 Oxfordshire QCE 54,188,718 57,464,495 6.05 
			 Southampton and South West Hants QD3 56,973,211 59,875,104 5.09 
			 West Kent QAF 96,076,221 105,083,957 9.38 
			 West Surrey QAL 61,468,564 65,429,413 6.44 
			 West Sussex QAN 84,286,628 88,822,453 5.38 
			 Avon QD8 92,983,094 97,867,484 5.25 
			 Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly QDV 59,619,660 62,634,738 5.06 
			 Dorset QDW 75,175,594 75,847,283 0.89 
			 Gloucestershire QDY 57,403,791 58,919,964 2.64 
			 North and East Devon QDX 51,958,609 53,644,999 3.25 
			 Somerset QD5 50,470,846 53,522,847 6.05 
			 South and West Devon QD6 66,432,177 70,965,510 6.82 
			 Wiltshire QD7 59,094,411 62,774,744 6.23 
			 Birmingham QD9 103,723,220 109,457,523 5.53 
			 Coventry QEA 32,740,237 35,548,591 8.58 
			 Dudley QEC 31,604,000 33,745,605 6.78 
			 Herefordshire QED 16,650,484 17,623,361 5.84 
			 North Staffordshire QEH 50,863,793 54,359,854 6.87 
			 Sandwell QEE 34,093,938 34,940,247 2.48 
			 Shropshire QEF 49,115,312 51,879,277 5.63 
			 Solihull QEG 23,226,544 23,653,585 1.84 
			 South Staffordshire QEJ 62,472,831 61,613,956 -1.37 
			 Walsall QEK 29,181,052 29,868,607 2.36 
			 Warwickshire QEL 51,744,497 56,531,625 9.25 
			 Wolverhampton QEM 23,711,980 28,056,977 18.32 
			 Worcestershire QEN 53,137,664 56,426,316 6.19 
			 Bury and Rochdale QCT 43,736,081 47,138,170 7.78 
			 East Lancashire QCX 58,318,642 65,201,689 11.80 
			 Liverpool QC2 52,164,069 61,443,559 17.79 
			 Manchester QC3 53,996,448 58,456,213 8.26 
			 Morecambe Bay QC4 38,391,129 40,220,526 4.77 
			 North Cheshire QCV 35,905,320 39,047,301 8.75 
			 North West Lancashire QCY 61,236,621 63,259,424 3.30 
			 Salford and Trafford QC6 55,963,487 59,628,307 6.55 
			 Sefton QC7 32,205,042 35,608,958 10.57 
			 South Cheshire QCW 75,908,512 83,049,782 9.41 
			 South Lancashire QC1 35,242,497 36,561,473 3.74 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley QC5 43,837,225 46,927,531 7.05 
			 Stockport QC8 35,366,700 36,965,543 4.52 
			 West Pennine QC9 49,785,950 53,164,840 6.79 
			 Wigan and Bolton QDA 64,247,917 71,330,199 11.02 
			 Wirral QDC No Data 44,758,134 —

Health Care (Performance)

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the NHS South East Regional Office's Atlas of NHS and Social Care Performance.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	A copy of volume I Maps and volume II Ranked Bar Charts and Source Data will be placed in the Library.

Acute Beds

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many acute beds there are per 1,000 residents in (a) the Buckinghamshire Health Authority area and (b) England.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Number of acute beds per 1,000 population in the Buckinghamshire health authority area and England 2000–01
		
			   Total acute beds:  
			  located in Buckinghamshire HA area for England 
		
		
			 Available acute beds 1,189 107,956 
			 Population 692,891 49,997,089 
			 Acute beds/1,000 population 1.72 2.16 
		
	
	Source: KH03

Accident and Emergency Departments

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients admitted to hospital in October via an accident and emergency department had to wait more than four hours for a bed; and what proportion that figure represents of all patients so admitted to hospital during October.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The latest figures are for quarter one (April to June 2001). In quarter one, 531,063 patients were admitted to hospital via accident and emergency departments.
	Of these, 66,383 (12 per cent.) had to wait more than four hours for a bed.

Children (Local Authority Care)

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the average time during which looked after children were held in care under the responsibility of local authorities in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the trend.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The table provides figures on the average number of care days per child, together with the number of children looked after at any time in the year, and the total number of care days provided, for looked after children in years ending 31 March 1996 and 31 March 2000. The figures are broken down according to legal status.
	The figures show that the average number of days in care per child in a year has increased.
	Long-term trends show that although the total number who are looked after at any time in the year has been increasing in recent years, annual totals for the number who started to be looked after and the number who ceased to be looked after in the previous 12 months have both been slightly decreasing over the same period.
	At the beginning of 2001 the Department commissioned the Thomas Coram Research Unit (Institute of Education, University of London) to conduct a tightly focused research study into the reasons that lie behind this increase in the number of children looked after by local authorities.
	The research is designed to assess, among other things, the extent to which drug taking, alcoholism, violence and mental health problems within the family may have been significant factors underlying decisions made by Courts and local authorities to look after children.
	
		Number of children looked after at any time during the year, and the number of days of care provided during years ending 31 March 1996 and 2000, England
		
			  1996 2000 1995–2000(38) 
		
		
			 Total
			 Number of looked after children in year 79,400 81,500 3 
			 Care days provided (thousand) 18,227 20,820 14 
			 Average number of days per child 229 255 11 
			 
			  Full care orders and interim care orders 
			 Number of looked after children in year 35,500 43,700 23 
			 Care days provided (thousand) 10,494 13,094 25 
			 Average number of days per child 296 300 1 
			 
			 Section 20 of Children Act 1989
			 Number of looked after children in year 43,600 37,700 -13 
			 Care days provided (thousand) 7,140 6,977 -2 
			 Average number of days per child 164 185 13 
			 
			 Other legal statuses
			 Number of looked after children in year 7,100 8,300 16 
			 Care days provided (thousand) 592 749 27 
			 Average number of days per child 83 91 9 
		
	
	(38) Percentage increase
	Notes:
	1. Table excludes children looked after under a series of short term placements
	2. A child may appear in more than one legal status category in the year, hence sub-totals do not add up to total of all children
	Source:
	DH annual statistical return SSDA 903

Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what basis he judges whether local authority social services departments are adequately providing services related to adoption and adoption support; and whether he proposes to compile performance tables as a result of the Adoption and Children Bill.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 29 November 2001
	At present the social services inspectorate inspects services using standards. In November 2000 the social services inspectorate produced an inspection report "Adopting Changes: Survey and Inspection of Local Councils' Adoption Services", a copy of which is available in the Library. The report provides comprehensive and up-to-date information about the current position, examples of good practice and a checklist for councils to use to review their services.
	One of the 50 personal social services performance assessment framework indicators directly relates to adoption (the percentage of children looked after adopted during the year, indicator reference C23).
	The social services inspectorate assesses each council's performance every year, taking into account evidence from indicators, inspections and other sources. Assessment of adoption services is included as part of this overall assessment. Next year, the overall assessment will be published in the form of a star rating for each council.
	We are currently developing additional monitoring mechanisms including collecting information on the types of adoption support services made available by councils at present. This is intended to help councils benchmark their services against those of other councils. In addition, the adoption and permanence task force has published an audit tool (available at www.doh.gov.uk/adoption) to help councils review their adoption support services and identify possible areas for development.
	These mechanisms will be developed further to monitor the implementation of the Adoption and Children Bill.

Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what organisations he has met this year to discuss the Adoption and Children Bill.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 29 November 2001
	I have met the British Agencies for Adoption and Fostering, the Associate Parliamentary Group for Looked After Children, and the All Party Parliamentary Group on Adoption. As a member of the Special Standing Committee, I have also heard the views of a wide range of key stakeholders in adoption.
	Departmental officials have met with a group convened by the British Agencies for Adoption and Fostering on several occasions this year to discuss the Bill. The membership of this group encompasses a wide range of organisations which represent children, adopted adults, adoptive families and birth families. These include the British Agencies for Adoption and Fostering, the Local Government Association, the National Organisation for Counselling Adoptees and Parents, the Catholic Children's Society (Westminster), After Adoption, the Adoption Forum, Adoption UK, the Family Rights Group and the Law Society.

Adoption

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likely cost of implementation of the Adoption and Children Bill to (a) local authorities, (b) voluntary adoption agencies and (c) adopting parents.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 29 November 2001
	The main financial implications of the Adoption and Children Bill for local authorities lie in the provisions on adoption support, the independent review mechanism, access to information, special guardianship, the Adoption and Children Act Register and the new system of placement for adoption. In each case, any additional costs will be proportionate to the improvements in the level of service provided to people affected by adoption.
	Voluntary adoption agencies will principally be affected by the provisions in the Bill on the Adoption and Children Act Register, the independent review mechanism and consistent access to information. The regulatory impact assessment describes the expected impact of the Bill on voluntary adoption agencies in more detail. This is not expected to be significant. The Bill will not create any additional costs for adoptive parents and in practice will ensure that many more adoptive families get the financial and other support they need.
	We have already made available an extra £66.5 million for adoption over three years. The resources required to implement the Adoption and Children Bill will also be addressed as part of the forthcoming spending review.

Attendance Allowance

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on what powers local authorities have to treat attendance allowance as a means-tested benefit for the purpose of social care charges.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 30 November 2001
	Councils have discretion under the Health and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983 to decide whether to take Attendance Allowance into account when assessing ability to pay charges for home care and other non- residential social services. Statutory guidance issued to councils on 23 November 2001 expects councils which take attendance allowance into account to undertake a specific assessment of a person's disability-related expenditure, to ensure that any charge is reasonable. This guidance will be implemented by no later than 1 October 2002 for people receiving more than 10 hours home care weekly and no later than 1 April 2003 for all other service users.

Nurses (Portsmouth)

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many additional nurses can be employed by the Portsmouth hospitals NHS trust as a consequence of the recent award of additional funds to the trust; and what impact he expects this to have on accident and emergency waiting times.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The allocation to Portsmouth hospitals national health service trust to fund additional nursing posts in accident and emergency and support the development of the emergency care strategy is £18,321 this year and £75,117 for 2002–03.
	Information on how the extra resources are to be used and the expected benefits for accident and emergency services is available from the chairman of the trust.

Waiting Times (Cosham)

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were waiting for treatment more than four hours from arrival at the Queen Alexandra hospital at Cosham at the end of each quarter in (a) 2000 and (b) 2001.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The information requested is not available centrally.

Accident and Emergency Units (Portsmouth)

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses were employed in the accident and emergency units run by the Portsmouth hospitals NHS trust at the end of each quarter of (a) 2000 and (b) 2001.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The information requested is not available centrally.

Social Care Charges

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the ability of a local authority to impose social care charges upon an individual living at home who is receiving prescribed medical treatment.

Jacqui Smith: holding answer 30 November 2001
	Local councils have discretion whether to charge for home care or other non-residential social services for a person living at home. Services for which the national health service has underlying responsibility, are free at the point of use, except where there are specific charging powers, such as those for NHS prescriptions.

Health Authority Funding

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the per capita funding by each health authority in England in (a) 1995, (b) 1996, (c) 1997, (d) 1998, (e) 1999 and (f) 2000.

John Hutton: holding answer 30 November 2001
	Allocations per weighted head of population for each health authority in England for the financial years 1996–97 to 2000–01 are shown in table 1.
	Prior to 1 April 1996 allocations were made to regional health authorities. Allocations per weighted head of population for each regional health authority in 1995–96 are shown in table 2.
	
		Table 1
		
			  £  
			 Health authority 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000(39) 2000–01 
		
		
			 Avon 430 435 466 622 681 
			 Barking and Havering 425 453 468 623 694 
			 Barnet 446 460 491 644 691 
			 Barnsley 414 431 440 612 669 
			 Bedfordshire 402 426 448 606 663 
			 Berkshire 410 415 446 606 666 
			 Bexley and Greenwich 435 470 493 662 729 
			 Birmingham 443 450 464 632 693 
			 Bradford 429 440 450 621 684 
			 Brent and Harrow 445 463 496 649 704 
			 Bromley 406 443 471 626 688 
			 Buckinghamshire 409 428 460 613 668 
			 Bury and Rochdale 420 438 449 622 687 
			 Calderdale and Kirklees 430 445 459 631 687 
			 Cambridge and Huntingdon(40) 415 425 454 321 n/a 
			 Cambridgeshire(40) n/a n/a n/a n/a 671 
			 Camden and Islington 486 479 500 651 710 
			 Cornwall and Isles of Scilly 424 445 465 643 701 
			 County Durham 419 435 448 613 674 
			 Coventry 425 437 448 607 669 
			 Croydon 417 434 464 621 681 
			 Doncaster 416 434 447 629 688 
			 Dorset 431 447 477 643 701 
			 Dudley 419 437 459 622 677 
			 Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow 440 453 479 625 688 
			 East and North Hertfordshire 427 437 471 624 679 
			 East Kent 403 431 463 640 705 
			 East Lancashire 429 442 451 624 683 
			 East London and the City 439 433 445 603 666 
			 East Norfolk(40) 421 440 461 633 n/a 
			 East Riding 426 439 454 626 689 
			 East Surrey 432 448 483 641 703 
			 East Sussex, Brighton and Hove 404 446 469 642 705 
			 Enfield and Haringey 430 447 471 633 691 
			 Gateshead and South Tyneside 433 448 460 625 682 
			 Gloucestershire 445 450 479 652 708 
			 Herefordshire 435 451 466 628 685 
			 Hillingdon 438 440 464 631 684 
			 Isle of Wight 435 479 504 674 736 
			 Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster 427 428 443 576 637 
			 Kingston and Richmond 448 469 496 644 706 
			 Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham 425 445 466 628 705 
			 Leeds 428 444 457 632 694 
			 Leicestershire 414 432 448 613 670 
			 Lincolnshire 431 448 463 632 681 
			 Liverpool 433 448 465 644 702 
			 Manchester 459 469 473 645 704 
			 Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth 439 457 487 643 700 
			 Morecambe Bay 444 466 485 656 710 
			 Newcastle and North Tyneside 441 452 462 634 696 
			 Norfolk(40) n/a n/a n/a n/a 688 
			 North and East Devon 435 454 474 640 697 
			 North and Mid Hampshire 426 452 480 638 693 
			 North Cheshire 459 470 482 639 694 
			 North Cumbria 429 443 463 630 691 
			 North Derbyshire 422 445 465 626 684 
			 North Essex 399 426 453 624 687 
			 North Nottinghamshire 423 439 452 621 672 
			 North Staffordshire 418 439 451 614 678 
			 North West Anglia(40) 419 432 451 616 n/a 
			 North West Lancashire 415 434 447 626 688 
			 North Yorkshire 422 440 464 626 684 
			 Northamptonshire 428 438 466 638 694 
			 Northumberland 422 443 461 629 687 
			 Nottingham 414 432 447 614 673 
			 Oxfordshire 403 424 454 610 672 
			 Portsmouth and South East Hampshire 417 440 468 627 688 
			 Redbridge and Waltham Forest 420 457 484 658 714 
			 Rotherham 419 439 450 626 682 
			 Salford and Trafford 436 444 459 644 701 
			 Sandwell 431 444 460 622 684 
			 Sefton 428 441 468 637 709 
			 Sheffield 441 458 471 640 698 
			 Shropshire 418 438 458 626 678 
			 Solihull 433 451 472 636 690 
			 Somerset 423 443 467 634 691 
			 South and West Devon 431 448 469 641 698 
			 South Cheshire 426 443 465 631 694 
			 South Derbyshire 433 445 459 615 677 
			 South Essex 392 423 450 607 677 
			 South Humber 435 457 477 650 701 
			 South Lancashire 434 461 479 643 702 
			 South Staffordshire 433 450 466 633 686 
			 Southampton and South West Hamptonshire 405 431 464 629 688 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley 422 431 451 627 684 
			 Stockport 415 425 447 631 691 
			 Suffolk 427 444 476 638 694 
			 Sunderland 423 440 450 625 682 
			 Tees 427 432 451 624 682 
			 Wakefield 439 457 471 632 693 
			 Walsall 417 433 446 623 679 
			 Warwickshire 443 464 481 645 699 
			 West Hertfordshire 432 447 476 638 691 
			 West Kent 409 439 472 632 694 
			 West Pennine 419 434 446 618 676 
			 West Surrey 439 450 489 643 706 
			 West Sussex 406 427 463 624 684 
			 Wigan and Bolton 410 427 441 608 667 
			 Wiltshire 444 449 481 639 702 
			 Wirral 424 433 457 642 710 
			 Wolverhampton 422 440 456 622 677 
			 Worcestershire 428 454 475 639 692 
			 England 426 443 464 629 688 
		
	
	(39) Allocations for 1999–2000 onwards are not comparable with those for 1996–97 to 1998–99 which cover hospital and community health services (HCHS) only. 1999–2000 was the first year of unified allocations which cover HCHS, prescribing and discretionary general medical services
	(40) Cambridge and Huntingdon, East Norfolk and North West Anglia health authorities merged on 1 April 1999 to form Cambridgeshire health authority and Norfolk health authority
	
		Table 2
		
			  £  
			  Regional health authority Allocation per weighted head of population 
		
		
			 Northern and Yorkshire 476 
			 Trent 469 
			 Anglia and Oxford 460 
			 North Thames 478 
			 South Thames 464 
			 South and West 472 
			 West Midlands 479 
			 North West 469 
			 England 471

Acute Beds (Portsmouth)

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many acute beds the Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust had at (a) the most recent date for which figures are available, (b) 31 December 2000, (c) 31 December 1999 and (d) 31 December 1998; and how many of those beds were occupied by delayed discharges (i) awaiting social services funding and (ii) with social services funding.

Hazel Blears: holding answer 30 November 2001
	The latest available figures are for the financial year 2000–01. Portsmouth Hospitals National Health Service Trust had 1011 average daily number of acute beds in wards open overnight. A count of beds as at 31 December 1998, 1999 and 2000 is not available centrally.
	The specific information requested on the delayed discharges affecting these beds is not available centrally. Information on delayed discharges in the Portsmouth area has been placed in the Library.

Motor Racing (Tobacco Sponsorship)

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the Government's policy is on the European Commission's draft proposals relating to tobacco sponsorship of Formula 1 motor racing.

Jacqui Smith: The current text of the European Commission's proposals for a directive on tobacco advertising and sponsorship includes a provision prohibiting the sponsorship of events taking place in several member states or having similar cross-border effects if such sponsorship is with the aim of promoting a tobacco product.
	The current text provides for implementation up to two years after a directive is adopted. The date for adoption is at present uncertain.
	In 1998 we agreed with our European partners that global sporting events should have until 1 October 2006 to phase out tobacco sponsorship, provided first that they do not sign new contracts with tobacco companies and secondly that they phase out the current sponsorship that they receive. This remains our view.

NICE Review

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards establishing the review of NICE; when the review will commence; who will conduct the review; what the terms of reference are; what arrangements there will be for consulting interested parties; and when he expects the review to be concluded.

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he intends to conduct a fundamental review of NICE; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The report of the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry makes some far-reaching recommendations on the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). We are therefore considering how these will affect the review of NICE. We will also need to take into account the recent announcement that the Health Select Committee is to hold a short inquiry into the progress NICE has made in achieving the key goals envisaged in A First Class Service.

Non-tobacco Goods

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimates he has made of the value of the UK market for non-tobacco goods which share tobacco branding.

Jacqui Smith: We have not made any such assessment.

Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry

Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will publish the Government's response to the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The Government's response to the Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry will be published shortly.

NHS Direct

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to the hon. Member for Stroud (Mr. Drew), 27 November Ref 19267 2001, Official Report, Columns 859-60W, how many inquiries have been received by NHS Direct since its inception; what proportion of those inquiries come from rural areas; and what proportion of those inquiries required (a) a visit to the doctor and (b) treatment in a hospital.

Hazel Blears: Since NHS Direct was launched in March 1998 it has handled over 8,000,000 calls. This calendar year alone it has handled over 4,500,000 calls, averaging 90,000–100,000 calls a week. NHS Direct call volume data are collected as a figure for the total population area covered by a particular site and not by rural/urban split. Out of the 4,500,000 calls made to NHS Direct this calendar year, 38 per cent. of callers were advised to see their general practitioner, and 11 per cent. advised to visit a hospital.
	NHS Direct has not been set up to merely reduce demand on other health services. It is about making sure that patients get to the right service at the right time, and giving people reassuring clinical advice so that they can look after themselves if that is the appropriate thing to do.

Preserved Rights

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money has been allocated to local authorities in England for 2002–03 in relation to the transfer of responsibility for preserved rights cases from 8 April 2002; of that sum, how much relates (a) to the sum that is transferred from the Department for Work and Pensions relating to what would have been paid through income support and (b) to the costs of the shortfall between the preserved rights income support rates and existing care homes as stated in the draft guidance to local authorities regarding the abolition of preserved rights; on what basis the sum allocated to cover the shortfall referred to in (b) has been allocated between local authorities; and whether the basis for the sum allocated to cover the shortfall referred to in (b) reflects the variations in shortfall between local authorities.

Jacqui Smith: Local authorities in England will receive additional funding of £614 million in 2002–03 because of the transfer to them from 8 April next year of responsibility for people with preserved rights. Of this sum, £528 million is a transfer from the Department for Work and Pensions. It represents the difference between what the DWP estimate they would have spent on income support, attendance allowance and disability living allowance on preserved rights residents under the current arrangements and what they estimate will be spent on Income Support for such residents under the new system. The remaining £86 million is intended to meet the cost to authorities of carrying out care assessments and the estimated shortfall between preserved rights income support rates and the care home fees of the residents concerned. We shall announce as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement how we intend to allocate these resources between individual local authorities.

Older People

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to implement the National Service Framework for Older People, with particular reference to Standard Six on falls and osteoporosis.

Jacqui Smith: The National Service Framework for Older People sets a standard and associated milestones for the development and introduction of integrated falls services across all health and social care systems by April 2005. Annual milestones are set from April 2003. Early planning and supporting work has begun on implementation and the National Institute for Clinical Excellence has been asked to develop clinical guidelines for the assessment and prevention of falls including recurrent falls in older people, with an associated clinical audit dataset, database and methodology.

Carers

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance he plans to give to people who take the responsibility of looking after elderly family members and are not able to work.

Jacqui Smith: Through the National Strategy for Carers, we are making resources available to help carers. We introduced the Carers Grant in 1999, the sole purpose of which is to enable local councils to enhance provision of community care and children's services and in particular to enable carers to take a break from their caring role. To reach the NHS Plan target of ensuring that 75,000 more carers receive a break by 2004, the Carers Grant will increase from £70 million this year to £100 million in financial year 2003–04.
	The Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000, which came into force in April, gives local councils further duties and powers to help carers.
	In addition, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced a package of measures last Autumn that will provide over £500 million extra support for carers over three years, from which more than 300,000 carers could benefit financially.

Carers

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance he will give pensioners to help with the costs of long-term care.

Jacqui Smith: The NHS Plan announced that an additional £1.4 billion a year would be made available for improving services and standards of care for older people by 2003–04. Over £400 million of the £1.4 billion represents funds for a range of reforms to the long-term care system which we have introduced. These reforms will assist pensioners with the costs of long-term care and many of them have already been enacted. Free nursing care in nursing homes for current self-funders was introduced from October, as has a system of deferred payments to avoid people having to sell their homes when they first enter residential care. Since April the value of a property has been disregarded for 12 weeks when undertaking the residential care means test.

Care for the Elderly

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the costs of home care for the elderly and what choice old people have in what service they receive.

Jacqui Smith: Councils have discretion under the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983 whether to charge for home care or other non-residential social services. The Department issued statutory guidance, "Fairer Charging Policies for Home Care and other non-residential Social Services", to councils on 23 November 2001.
	The Department published for consultation draft National Minimum Standards for Domiciliary Care on 31 October 2001. Standards 7 and 9 concern the need to respect service users' choices.
	Local "Better Care, Higher Standards" charters for long-term care are expected to set out the ways in which individuals' views about their care will be sought and respected.

Care for the Elderly

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on (a) primary and (b) intermediate care for the aged.

Jacqui Smith: Older people can expect the same rights of access to primary care as any other patient group. In addition, in recognition of the specific health needs of older people, patients over 75 are entitled to an annual health check from their general practitioners on request and, since 2000, all people aged 65 and over have been offered free immunisation against influenza.
	The NHS Plan makes clear that intermediate care is a priority service for older people. This was reinforced in the National Service Framework for Older People. Intermediate care has an important role to play in tackling delayed transfers of care. A recent survey indicates that good progress is being made towards meeting the NHS Plan targets for intermediate care—by 2004 an extra 5,000 intermediate care beds and 1,700 supported places, together benefiting an additional 150,000 older people.

CT/MRI Scanners

Michael Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the allocation of the next 50 CT and MRI scanners; and if he will state (a) when allocations will be announced and (b) what consultations will be held with health authorities on this distribution.

Jacqui Smith: The allocation of the 50 CT and 50 MRI scanners outlined in the NHS Cancer Plan is likely to be announced in the summer of 2002. Criteria for their distribution have yet to be decided. These scanners are due for installation in 2003–04.
	Databases of current equipment and regional provision as well as local information, such as the cancer networks facilities and equipment strategies, will be used to help formulate criteria for allocation. When allocations are considered they will be discussed with the new strategic health authorities before they are finalised with individual NHS trusts.

Young Carers

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking to ensure that the current information campaign for carers' rights will include young carers.

Jacqui Smith: Information for carers has been made accessible through telephone helplines, publications by the Government and voluntary organisations, carers centres and on-line services such as the Government carers website.
	We are committed to addressing the needs of young carers as set out in both the Quality Protects programme launched in 1998 and the National Strategy for Carers published in 1999. The views and comments of young carers are taken into consideration when developing policy for the Quality Protects programme.
	We currently fund the Children's Society to take forward "The Young Carers Initiative" which involves consulting directly with young carers about their views and needs. The information obtained from the consultation will be used as a basis for producing a practice guide and resource pack. These packs will contain information on how best to deliver the needs of young carers and to encourage better partnership working within agencies.

Young Carers

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking to ensure the needs of young carers will be targeted as part of his Department's funding of mental health services.

Jacqui Smith: A target has been set for mental health services that by March 2002 all regular carers of people on enhanced Care Programme Approach (CPA), including young carers, will have their own written support plans which will address their caring, physical and own mental health needs. These support plans will be implemented by October 2002.

Diabetes

Shaun Woodward: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will publish the Diabetes National Service Framework; and if he will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Bethnal Green and Bow (Ms King) on 15 October 2001, Official Report, column 1046W.